Changes
by Dark Phoenix Rising
Summary: Post X3! My version of how it should go on. Logan's and Jean's struggle for a new life with many surprises and twists, lots of drama but also happy moments. Hope you enjoy reading it! Thanks to all reviewers and readers for the support!
1. Chapter 1

**Changes**

**Summary**: Post X3, 4 month have passed since the incidents and Phoenix's death. While Storm has to deal with the school, inner demons are hunting Logan who separates himself from everyone. But soon an earthquake changes everything…

**Pairing**: none so far

**Author's Note**: This is my first fanfic in English. I usually write in German, so please be kind! ;) Please review!

With eyes like the devil himself she looked at him. A sinister smile on her face as she watched him fighting his way to her. He held his hand in front of his face, tried to keep his weight to the front, since her attacks could easily pull him off of his feet. With heavy steps he came closer and closer, his eyes never leaving hers. Her attacks ripped the skin off his bones. He couldn't even realize how fast this happened and how fast his skin was renewed again. He didn't realize the immense pain which jolted through his entire body, feeling like being ripped apart.  
Finally, appearing to him like an eternity, he reached her. Looking directly into those predator eyes, he knew there was no choice left. He knew that this was what she's asked from him before. With his hazel eyes on her, he brought his fist closer to her heart. There was no time left for any big words. He could feel the world falling apart and he was the last instance to defend it.  
Her face changed for a short moment. Begging again to do what was necessary. One last time he swallowed and told her what she already knew. "I love you…"  
He felt his fist slamming against her body, saw her eyes widen in shock, while a silent scream left her mouth. Within less than a second her face changed and she collapsed with a peaceful smile on her face. It was then that the pain hit him full frontal. His body quitting its service, he fell to the ground, holding her tight and venting his pain to the world. He didn't even realize how everything went back to normal, didn't see the others getting closer to him. He only had eyes for her and her limp body in his arms.  
A hand touched his shoulder, trying to get his attention. When he didn't react the hand began to shake him. Finally, he looked up. The person in front of him said something, but neither could he discern who it was, nor did he understand what was said…  
Someone pulled him up and dragged him away, while another person tried to get her out of his hands. Immediately he clenched his fist causing his claws to pop out. The person stopped its intention.  
Tired as he was, he let them pull him away and the only thing he could think about was his failure: The promise he once made and couldn't keep…again…


	2. Prologue

**Changes Prologue**

The room was dark. Not even the light of the sun could light it up enough to see the dimension of the fury which had raged in it only moments ago…

Furniture was sliced into pieces, windows shattered, while clothes were torn out of the destroyed wardrobe; scattered on the ground as if no one really cared about them. What was left of the furniture and the wall, which were covered with holes, were all marked with three long scratches; giving the impression that a wild animal must have raged in it. The sadness and agony from within could also be found on the outside. Tears ran down a lot of sad faces. Some were staring into emptiness, others crying or had their eyed closed in sorrow. In front of one large and two small stones stood the new, compulsory, head mistress of the institute. She hadn't intended to do this job so early. But now she had to; not by her own free will but because of the aftereffects of the terrible incidents…and just because someone just had to… Crying silently, she hid her pain and deep sorrow within her, tried to be strong for all others who surrounded her in black clothes, while she said some calming, worth to be remembered words. Even if her sorrow tore her soul and heart apart. She knew she wasn't surrounded by all people who should be here right now. She knew, the others had noticed it, too. Turning her head during a short break, her eyes saddened even more when she caught the sight of a window. Looking down briefly, she swallowed, noticing that some others, those who shared her thoughts in that moment, had followed her gaze. They, too, looked down. She continued her sad speech while behind that window someone sat on the ground, leaning with the back against the wreckage of a former bed, hearing everything she said. The legs were pulled close an empty eyes were staring at two open, still bloody hands. It wasn't his. He could still feel it… How the claws had stabbed through her thin body, how it had arched up in shock and pain, the muscles which had tensed … Her eyes had returned to the beautiful color he loved so much, she'd left the entire furious beast behind her…just to give him a peace- and thankful smile… Her very last, since his sensitive ears were doomed to listen to her constantly fading heartbeat until it had stopped forever.

Clenching his fists, he closed his eyes tightly in agony. The feeling of her limb body in his arms was too fresh for him, too much for him to endure… He had killed her, killed the only person who had meant the world to him; for who he would haven gladly given his worthless life without thinking twice about it. As long as she was well and alive…that had been everything that had mattered to him. And now she was no more. She had died again and he'd to watch it for the second time. But this time was different. Far more different, because he was her murderer; it had been him who'd made her heart stop beating forever… Him who had failed once more to protect the person he loved the most. It was his entire fault, everything that had gone wrong since her return was all alone his fault…

Gripping his head tightly, he lowered it to the ground and grimaced in pain. He had to be blamed for her unnecessary death. If he hadn't mentioned the Professor in the infirmary, she wouldn't have freaked out, if he had gone into the Grey's house instead to talk to her, she wouldn't have killed Charles and joined the Brotherhood. She might have listened to him; he might have been able to help her, to bring her back home where she was safe… On Alcatraz, he should have been faster. If he had just grabbed her and led her away from the scene, the soldiers wouldn't have shot at her…because of them she'd began to attack everything, because of those darn soldiers she had freaked out and began to kill every living thing in her radius… If he'd only been quicker, if he'd only done some things differently… She'd be safe and alive…Turning around in an instance, he extracted his claws and sliced through the last whole piece of his room. Shredded it until nothing was left of it, before he dropped to the ground heavily breathing and began to sob. It was his fault…everything of it…

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself laying on the cold ground. It was already dark on the outside and he realized that he must have fallen asleep during his crying. His eyes burnt like hell and he had to close them for a brief moment again. Heaving a deep sigh, he felt how a skull breaking headache set in. But he didn't care. If he had the choice, he'd gladly rip damn beating heart out of his chest. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to get through the darn adamantium which protected it… Maybe if he stabbed himself through the back? Looking around the mess he'd caused he couldn't find anything he could use for it. Slashing his wrists wouldn't do, too. He'd tried it too often before in the past 15 years that he had gotten tired of it. He couldn't even shot or drown himself without his healing factor kicking in to keep him from dying… Closing his eyes, he clenched his fists hard. But he wanted it to stop. He wanted this pain to stop and he was ready to do anything to achieve his goal… Opening his eyes he stared into emptiness. He cursed his mutation for being that good, he cursed himself for not being able to trick it. Smirking, he snorted before he leant his head back against the wall. He was good in killing, very good. He could easily end anyone's life if he wanted to,…but not his pitiful own, not even when he wanted it to end so desperately. Except…

Looking at the door, he narrowed his eyes when it knocked again. He didn't want to see them, not anyone of them. All those _I'm so sorry_'s and _time will heal all wounds_ crap they came up with. His wounds couldn't be healed. As the door opened slowly, he uttered a life threatening, menacing low growl, which told anyone to run away immediately.

"God, what did you do!" Storm asked after the room was lit up only enough for her to see the scratched and holes in the walls. She could only guess what the rest looked like. Feeling a thick lump in her throat, she heard him growling at her. Immediately, her sadness took over again. She could only guess what it looked like within him, how much he suffered. She still had to cry when she saw him kneeling in front of them, holding Jean's dead body tight while crying and begging her to forgive him over and over again. She'd never seen him cry before. And it had torn her heart out of her chest to see him like that. To see what for a great impact her death had on him… "Logan, I…"

"Piss off!" he cut her off, growling even more.

Putting her left hand to her chest, her eyes got wet in despair. "We haven't seen you since yesterday, Logan," she continued cautiously, still she didn't dare to move away from the door. His growl had even become more threatening when she'd went on to talk to him. She was aware of it that he wanted to be alone, but she couldn't let it happen. He needed someone around him to help him dealing with his grief and loss. "We are worried…" Starting, her eyes widened as some object, possibly a lamp, shattered to pieced close by.

"I said piss off!" he barked in return and Storm backed off slowly. She immediately felt scared as her heart began to beat triple rhythms.

"I…I only wanted to…," she stuttered but closed the door quickly when she heard another growl.

The following weeks didn't bring many changes. The trays with food which were left in front of his door, since he never came down to eat something the whole day through, were left untouched by him. The Dangerroom control panel always had to be set back on the next morning because he pushed it to its maximum at night. Storm kept on sneaking into the large room before the others got up; washing away the traces of blood he always left. Grabbing a cloth and watching it redden, she sometimes had to sob heavily. She felt like being left alone, as if she had to take care of everything all by herself. After getting up in the morning, she put on her mask, which she had to wear for the whole day, just to lay it down as soon as she reached her room in the late evening. At night, she cried until she finally fell asleep, just to endure the same routine on the day after… She had no one to talk to, no one to help her and she needed someone so desperately.

One night she couldn't sleep and walked down to the kitchen after turning around in her bed for hours. Just as she'd reached the lower level, she'd heard how the front door was opened. Surprised she'd looked at the large wall clock. It's been far past 3 a.m.. Confused, she had walked around the banister just to stop all of a sudden as she'd seen him. And the sight of him had made her heart contracting painfully. She hadn't seen him in weeks, no one had; it was only up to her to clean the mess and marks of destruction he always left behind. Turning a lamp on, she immediately looked into cold eyes. There was not even the smallest sign of an emotion left within them. Then her eyes wandered over his body, saw the soaked clothes of him, the few traces of blood which indicated that he must have taken part in a brawl. But this wasn't what caught her main attention. The cold but tired eyes of him which told her that he either couldn't sleep for weeks or didn't want to were one thing. The other shocked her even more as she noticed how thin he had become. He barely filled out his casual woman-beater and jeans. "Look at you…," she said barely audible in shock, but he only rolled his eyes while throwing his cigar to the ground and didn't paid any attention to her. Watching how he walked past her, she grabbed his cold hand. "Logan!"

Roughly, he pushed her aside and shot a menacing glare at her. He had been glad that he hadn't seen her in weeks, that she hadn't noticed him strolling around every night after he couldn't stand seeing Jean die over and over again in front of his eyes; after the guilt and grief became unbearable and he only wanted to drink or feel another, mostly physical, pain taking over to ease the sorrow he felt within. And now, there she stood and looked at him with those sympathetically but understanding eyes. In fact, she understood nothing of what he was going through. And he didn't give a damn on the sermon she was about to start.

"Why are you doing this?" Storm asked him with sadness in her voice. "Look at you, Logan! Why are you punishing yourself so much?" Again, she grabbed him, but this time with both hands as a scent, next to the one of his cigar, suddenly caught her attention. "How much did you drink!"

"What is it to you, eh?" he growled back in a low hiss and pushed her away again. Sadly as it was, he could drink as much as he wanted. It couldn't affect him, only make him feel a bit dizzy when he emptied bottle after bottle, but that's it. He couldn't even get drunk to forget if he wanted… He really was pitiful… But at least the liquid did its job and affected his weakened healing factor a lot. At least one thing worked according to plan.

"Logan!" Storm called after him when he began to climb up the stairs. "You'll have to eat and sleep! Even you should know that your mutation can't save you from starving!" Angrily about his stupidity, she met his glare. "What do you want to achieve with your behavior?" she asked him in her anger harshly. "Overloading your system? Well, go ahead! But it won't bring her back!" Seeing him stopping abruptly, she had to duck quickly as he threw a vase at her. Hearing the shattering of it behind her mixing with his low, but loud growl, she looked up at him with widened eyes. Her heart was in her mouth immediately. Watching how his eyes blackened when Wolverine took over, she only waited for him to jump over the banister and slash her into pieces. Hearing his heavy pants, she saw how he gritted his teeth and glared at her full of hate. She'd definitely just stabbed him right through his heart. Seeing how he grabbed the banister hard and closed his eyes, Storm cocked an eyebrow as he only turned around and headed upstairs. Still, she heard him slamming his door aloud. Heaving a deep sigh, she ran her hands through her face and shook her head. If it was difficult to reach him before, it was absolutely impossible now. With tears in her eyes, she looked at the spot were he'd been standing before; realizing that she couldn't help him… She knew the source of his grief, it was no secret at all. But she'd never expected him to change so much because of it… She didn't even recognize him anymore. He completely ran free in his grief by being aggressive against everything and everyone; even by being a danger to himself. Swallowing hard as tears began to fall silently, she walked over to the kitchen getting a cloth from it to wipe up the water from the ground his soaked clothes had left on it. Crying silently, while doing so, she felt a deep anger rising within her…

If Phoenix had controlled her powers, Scott and the Professor were still alive. If she'd listen to Charles, she wouldn't have killed him and so many people in her blind rage. It was her fault that humans and mutants found their death that day. It was her fault that she was alone and had to take care of so many things all alone. And it was her fault that people she loved were taken away from her were left being a mess… She had to be blames for all this, only her…

After sitting on the ground for more than an hour and watching the cloth getting soaked with water, she finally returned to her room. Passing Logan's door, she stopped all of a sudden; hearing groans and other scaring noises from within. Frowning, Storm leant her ear against the door and listened as she heard his loud shriek all of a sudden when he screamed _No!_. Not thinking twice, she opened the door and turned the light on. Not noticing the mess which had been his room before, she only had eyes for the sweating and heavily panting man on the mattress, who sat upright on it and stared into emptiness. Stopping next to his quivering form, she noticed the confused look he gave her; looking at her as if he didn't even knew where he actually was. Storm didn't think about the consequences as she pulled him close and tried to soothe him. She hadn't had to ask what his dream was about; she knew which nightmares haunted him for weeks. And it was one more reason for her to hate her…

"It was only a dream!" she said calmly and stroked his wet back. While doing so, she noticed once more how thin he actually was by now. Swallowing hard, she began to cry once more.

With a disturbed look, Logan shortly closed his eyes, feeling his heart rate getting back to normal. He's done it again. He'd killed her again… Grimacing, he couldn't help but sob while his hands grabbed his head. He was sick of it. No matter how hard he tried, he had to endure the same dream every time he closed his eyes and fell asleep. And if it only was for a minute… He saw his claws stabbing through her heart, saw her smile and lovingly eyes before her heart stopped beating and she collapsed. He couldn't endure this anymore. It was a complete torture for him. It tore his heart out of his chest every damn day he had to live through. It had to stop. He wanted it to stop…now and forever…

Hearing him crying heartrendingly, Storm pulled him even closer and leant against him. It made her heart ache from within to see him suffering so much and not being able to help him. And she hoped Phoenix would rod in hell for it… Cupping his face, she made him look at her. "Please stop it, Logan," she whispered pleadingly, while she, too, was crying. "Please stop doing this to yourself… I don't want to lose you, too!" Sobbing, she buried her face in her hands, while she was kneeling next to him in the mattress. He only looked at her emotionless. Her pitiful form didn't even touch him the merest. It couldn't touch something which had died with her and was no longer there. He had stopped caring a long time ago. His eyes became instantly cold again, when he pushed her from the mattress. Shocked, she looked at him with widened eyes. She just couldn't believe that he didn't even care about her feelings… Getting up slowly while she kept on looking into his cold and merciless eyes, she began to shake her head in disbelief. "Are you really that cold hearted by now?" she asked him barely audible. "Has she really destroyed you that much!"

"Get out!" he barked and got up to throw her out of his room if she didn't leave voluntarily.

"Fine," Storm nodded as her eyes went cold. "Then keep on doing this to you. But let me tell you one thing!" Swallowing, she held her tears back. "Don't expect me to cry or even take part in your burial when you starved to death!" With that she turned around and slammed the door shut behind her; running over to her room crying.

Logan only sat down again, staring into nothingness while he swore to himself that he wouldn't close his eyes to sleep only for the briefest moment ever again. If his guilt wouldn't let him sleep, he could go without it. At least he wouldn't be her executioner every night again…

The two following months brought some changes. The trays in front of his door didn't stop, but it wasn't Storm who brought them anymore. If someone asked her about Logan's whereabouts, she only shrugged and went on doing her work. Not that she really stopped caring… But she couldn't be strong for the others and do her job while keeping on dealing with the mess he caused. He had clearly shown her that he wanted top be left alone, that he didn't want anyone to be close. And it also hurt her too much to think about him. She heard him coming back late at night, watched him strolling around on the outside in the dark,…but never getting close to the gravestones. And she could only shake her head about him lapsing back into old habits. All she could do was hoping that, maybe, one day he would change for the better again. That he would come over his grief and stop being so aggressive in his despair. She knew he didn't do it because he wanted to punish them. He did it because he possibly wouldn't stand losing someone else, because he thought it was better being alone than having friends who would hurt him if they passed away…

So she went on doing what Charles had wanted her to do and led the school in his interest. Not knowing that soon everything would change drastically…

_To be continued in Changes Chapter 2_

**Okay, that was the short Prologue I wanted to add. While reading through the first chapters, I noticed that I never really explained why Logan behaved like he did in Chapter 2 and why Storm and his relationship was rather chilly at the beginning. I also remember that some asked what was wrong with his healing factor, so I wanted to answer your question. Well, I hope you liked it. I am currently working on the last chapter and the Epilogue. ; ) Please review! _And let me know which things you would like to see happening in the last two chapters! ; ) _Only because of you guys I have written so much ( I actually never planned so many chapters) so I want to thank you by adding the stuff you wish for. Everyone has one thing he can wish for! So, let me know! See ya!**


	3. Chapter 2

**Changes Chapter 2**

„He scares me…",Rogue said and looked at her glass full of chocolate milk. "I mean…I have never seen him like this… He's so…"

"…different?" ,Bobby asked and watched her raising her head, her eyes meeting his.

"Yeah…"

"Well, you can't blame him."

"I don't!"

"I know", he nodded.

"Nevertheless, it can't go on like this forever!" Storm came into the kitchen and opened the fridge. "We need him. I can't run this school all by myself…", she said while grabbing a bottle of water.

Rogue had watched her. "You have to give him more time. He just…"

"How much more time, Marie?" Ororo had turned around and you could see the anger within her face. "It's been almost 4 month since it happened. He wasn't like this when Jean first died."

"Well, he hadn't had to kill her back then, hadn't he?" ,Bobby answered and gave her a look. "He loved her. Even you should know that!"

Storm sighed. "Yeah, I know." She sat down on a chair opposite them. "I'm just stressed. Sorry!"

An unpleasant silence filled the room, which went on for minutes.

"Can't we help him?", Rogue asked finally.

Bobby shook his head. "He won't let us."

"But…"

"You know that he almost attacked u when we tried to get Jean's body out of his hands. If Colossus hadn't intervened…", Ororo shook her head. "I don't know what Logan would have done…"

"I wished the Professor was here…he would know what to do…" Rogue looked down again. She had never felt sadness like this before. It did not only hurt her that she had lost friends, but also that she wasn't able to help a friend for whom she cared the most and who had always helped her…

Later the day, Ororo was heading down the hall on her way to class. Just as she reached the corner and wanted to turn around it, she bumped into someone, which almost made her fall to the ground. "Damn it…can't you just watch your…", she cursed and looked up. Surprise made its way to her face. "Logan…", Ororo said confused since she hadn't seen him for over a week now. Or better: no one had as far as she knew.

He only glanced briefly at her and started to walk down the corridor again.

"Logan, wait!" She had noticed his condition and that he seemed to be wounded. When he didn't listen she grabbed him by the arm and made him stop. "What happened to you?", she asked and looked down his body. "Don't tell me you were in the Dangerroom in your condition!", Ororo asked angrily and turned him around. "Damn it, Logan, you know that you can get seriously hurt in there and now look at you." She detected that he was holding his ribs with one hand. Still, he didn't say a word. "When was the last time you ate something? And since your wounds aren't healing, I assume that you do not sleep, too. Am I right?" Right now she was the leader again who had to deal with the school and its students on the one hand and the X-Men on the other. And since she was responsible for nearly anything since the incident, she had to make sure that everything and everyone worked as it was supposed to be. She couldn't need chaos right now and she couldn't make exceptions. Everyone tried to help her and listened to her, everyone except the mutant right in front of her who lapsed back into old habits and tried to get her off his arm right now. "Listen to me…"

"Leave me alone, 'Ro…" His low voice told Storm that she should better do what he said. Nevertheless she ignored him. "Logan, how long do you want to go on like this?", she asked with concern in her voice. "Talk to us or…"

"I said leave me alone!", he hissed and tore his arm from her. Without paying any more attention to her, he went on down the hall.

"Damn it, Logan. Do you think acting like this will change anything?", she called after him. "I don't think so!"

"I don't give a shit on what you think!", he shouted back with anger in his voice and shortly after that, he was gone.

Offended, Ororo shook her head and turned around since she was already late for class.

The students were already sitting on their chairs as Storms came into the room and were curiously watching her. They asked themselves what might have happened since their teacher never came too late to class. Ororo took her seat in the front of them and looked through the room until she found who she was looking for. "Marie, could you do me a favor?"

Rogue stood up. "Sure, what is it?"

"Could you go to the kitchen and get some food and soda? Bring it to Logan and tell him I want him to eat!"

Marie raised an eyebrow, looked to Bobby who was sitting next to her seemed to be as confused as she was. "Uhm,…sure…" She finally said and left the room.

"And tell him I want him to sleep, too!", she heard Storm calling after her.

Rogue arrived at Logan's door with a tray full of food and a cool soda to drink for him. She knocked at the door. No response. Carefully, she opened the door and put her head into the room. "Logan!", Rogue asked quietly. Finally, she saw him laying o his bed, one hand holding his side. Since he wasn't moving and didn't turn his head towards her, she thought he was sleeping. Therefore, Rogue silently slipped into his room and put the tray onto the bedside table.

"What do you want, kid?"

She smiled and jumped a bit by the sound of his voice. "You're awake?"

"Of course I am…" His hazel eyes, looking even more tired than the last time she had seen him, were watching her cautiously. "So what do you want?"

Rogue swallowed. She heard the anger in his low voice. "I…Ororo wanted me to bring you some food and to tell you that she wants you to eat it…"

"Does she…?", he said annoyed raising an eyebrow and sat up. "Tell her I don't need a babysitter!"

"But you haven't…", she began as she realized that she was backing off. "We're just worried…that's all."

He was only looking at her in silence.

"'Kay, I better go…" With that she turned around and left him alone. After she was gone he sighted and closed his eyes for a brief moment. He looked down to the tray before laying down again. Every inch of his body hurt, but it was his own fault, he knew that. He had pushed the Dangerroom to its limits, had gotten everything out of it that was possible…also of himself, without thinking that it might be too much for him in his current state. Logan snorted as he felt a sharp pain at his right side. He closed his eyes again and tried to erase the pain from his mind, but also desperately not to fall asleep…

Dark clouds were coming up, covering the whole grounds in dark lights. Ororo was standing on the giant balcony watching it. Even if she was mostly responsible for such quick changes, this time she had nothing to do with it. And this was what worried her the most…

She looked up with her eyes turning white. She focused and concentrated on the weather, wanted to change it, but nothing happened. Ororo got confused and felt even more uncomfortable than before. This couldn't be good. Her eyes narrowed a bit and she frowned. Her ability has never failed here before. "At least not if the weather was for real…", she thought.

Storm watched as dark clouds gathered directly above the institute. Slowly and not breaking eye contact, she stumbled backwards, breathing heavily. Was this an attack?

Suddenly, the earth began to shake rapidly…

"You know, Charles…I still think your students should know about this", Moira said and put down the cup. "I mean…"  
"I know what you mean, Moira", Charles interrupted her. "I tried to contact Ororo, but somehow it doesn't work…and before all things aren't as they should be, I would rather prefer not to do it. It must be already hard enough for them." He laid on the bed with a cup in his hands. His gaze became sad and he broke eye contact. "Since the world still exists, I believe they had to kill one of her friends…"

"And especially in that situation they need you the most…", she said and looked at him. "What about this Logan you told me about? Didn't you say he was the only one who could get near the Phoenix without being destroyed and that he cared a lot about Jean?"

Charles nodded. "That's true. He could."

"What if he had to kill her?", Moira asked. "Don't you think that at least he needs your help?"

"He is tough enough to deal with it. And even if…he wouldn't ask for help." Charles set down the cup again after drinking a bit of the tea in it.

"Charles…", she began. "Even if he's as tough as you said….he's still a human being with feelings… And if I had to kill someone I love…", she broke off as the room began to shake heavily. "Oh my God…, what's happening?"

After a minute it was all over. Moira looked around the room, quickly checking if anything was seriously damaged. "We hadn't had an earthquake like this in the past years…or better said we never had such a strong one…", she said more to herself. When she realized that no one answered, she turned her head around. "Charles?", she asked puzzled. But soon she realized that the body, laying before her on the bed, was the same dead shell again which it had been before Charles' mind was transferred into it…

Back at the mansion, Storm was slowly getting back to her feet again. She had never experienced such a strong earthquake before. Surprised she looked up as she realized that the dark clouds were gone again. "Weird…", she thought as she suddenly heard a loud noise, as if a large stone broke, in the garden. Without thinking any further and with the same terrified feeling in her stomach, she ran downstairs…

The closer she got the more she slowed down. Ororo couldn't believe her eyes as she finally arrived at her destination: the graves of the Professor, Jean and Scott.

The scene before her ran her blood froze in the veins… The large gravestone of the Professor was broken and half destroyed. But this wasn't really what caught her fullest attention…

In front of Storm on the ground laid Charles Xavier who was directly looking at her.

"Oh my God…", was all she could barely audible say before she fell down on her knees…


	4. Chapter 3

**Changes Chapter 3**

"How is that possible?" Storm stood in the front of the Professor. Still she thought she was dreaming. "I mean…Logan saw it. He saw how she destroyed you…"  
The Professor nodded. "I know. I am as confused as you are, Ororo. And the fact that it did happen worries me too…"

Storm looked out of the window. "Why didn't you tell us?"

He knew what she meant. "I tried to contact you, but since this didn't work, I assumed that something was wrong. Normally, my powers should have been the same, even if I transferred my consciousness into another body…"

"So you believed that something was gong ob?"

"Of course, I hoped that I was wrong…"

Storm smirked. "Well, the good thing is that we got you back!"

The Professor returned the smile. "How are things here?"

She sighted and sat down on a chair. "It has been hard. Without you and Scott… We had to deal with so many things at once…"

Again he nodded. "What happened after I was gone?"

Storm told him everything she knew. About the battle, about Magneto being cured, how they fought so desperately against the Brotherhood… When she reached the part about the Phoenix, the Professor became serious.

"I see…", he said, looking down. "I thought that it must have ended like that…" He felt a great sadness within him. Not only that he lost one of his first students, it also hurt him that he wasn't able to help her… "How is Logan doing?"

Storm snorted. "Well, where do you want me to start?", she said, stood up again and began to walk up and down. "He doesn't talk with anyone, is aggressive like hell, doesn't eat, doesn't sleep as I assume and the last time I saw him he told me straight ahead that he doesn't give a damn on what I think. Oh, and before I forgot. When he did that he came from a Dangerroom instruction and from the way he looked, I assume that he used level 10. He is also not healing. Even Rogue can't get to him…"

Xavier nodded and sighted. "I see…I think I have done a terrible mistake…"

Storm put her hands on the chair and frowned. "What do you mean? What kind of mistake?"

The Professor turned his wheelchair and was on his way to the door. When he passed her, he gave her a short sign to follow him. "I thought he could deal with it. I knew he was the only one capable to stop the Phoenix, but as it seems I underestimated his feelings for her… Where is he now?"

"I guess where he always is", Storm shrugged. "Upstairs in his room."

When it knocked, Logan laid on his be. He grunted and turned his head towards the door. It knocked again. He rolled his eyes and closed them again, ignoring whoever it was in front of his room. He heard the door open and someone entering. Logan moved just a bit but his eyes were still closed. "Heard ya were back, Chuck…", he said and looked his visitor directly into the face. "Welcome back!"

The Professor stopped in front of him and smiled. "Hello Logan!"

Logan looked at him skeptically. "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to say hello."

"Really?" Logan gave Storm a quick glance. "Why is it so hard for me to believe that?"

The Professor still smiled. "I heard you're not feeling so well, so I wanted to check on you."

Logan snorted. "You can tell our EX-headmistress that I am fine and do not need to be checked on!"

His opposite felt the rage coming up inside the man in front of him. He concentrated a bit and suddenly Logan fell unconscious backwards.

Storm got a fright from it. "What did you do!", she asked the Professor nervously and came closer. Charles bent forward and put his hands next to Logan's head.

"I want to know why he refuses to sleep…"

"Refuses…!"

He closed his eyes and concentrated on the images he could see in the other ones head. Within seconds Logan woke up with a start. He breathed heavily and looked around as if he didn't know where he was. Finally, he found the shocked face of the Professor. Furious he jumped up. "Don't you ever do this again!", he hissed and stormed out of the room.

Ororo looked back and watched him, then she turned around again. She looked at the Professor, completely puzzled. "What the hell was that?"

Charley Xavier looked up and met her gaze. "It's even worse than I thought…"

She kneeled down and looked directly into his eyes. She didn't understand what was going on and desperately wanted to know what the Professor had seen in Logan's mind. "What do you mean?"

He was completely serious. "He hadn't had to kill the Phoenix. He killed Jean…"

On her way upstairs, Rogue bumped into Logan. Without paying any attention to her he kept on walking down the stairs. Surprised she watched him leaving. Finally, she shook her head and walked further up the stairs. As she reached the corridor to the dormitories, she saw Storm and the Professor coming towards her. "Hi", she greeted them.

"Have you seen Logan?", Storm ask and Marie could tell that both the Professor and her teacher looked worried.

"Uhm,…yeah. He just bumped into me. I think he was on his way to the outside. Did something happen?" She could feel that something was wrong.

"It's okay!", Storm said and walked away with the Professor following her.

During the following week Professor X took over his old courses again. Everyone was glad to have him back, even if no one could tell exactly how this miracle happened. Storm felt relieved that she hadn't had to deal with her role as a teacher and being the headmistress at the same time anymore. Everything had been too much for her. She had almost felt how the work had eaten her up inside more and more.

On her way to the library she met Hank who took over Jean's old classes twice a week, at least if he could make it. "Hank!", she greeted him cheerfully. "How are you doing?"

"Ororo", he smiled. "Never been better, How about you?"

"Same. Are you also on your way to the library?"

"That's right!"

Together they entered the giant room and looked for the books they needed. Besides the two of them the room was nearly completely empty. Only handful students were sitting around reading. After Storm had found a book, she was just about to lean against the window still as something in the garden caught her eye.

"What's wrong?", Hank asked as he noticed that she was watching something or someone on the outside. She just nodded into the direction she was looking at and he followed her lead.

"It's the first time I see him there…"

Hank gave her a quick glance. "Still the same with him?"

She nodded silently and went on to follow what was taking place in the garden.

In the meanwhile, Logan was slowly taking one step after the next, his eyes fixed on what was laying before him. The whole time he had done anything to avoid this place. Had taken the longest ways back to the mansion on his strolls at night, which he did if he was too tired again. So he avoided sleeping as well as he could… Not that he had been good in sleeping at night anyway, but since IT happened, he was afraid of it. She haunted him, the guilt he felt haunted him… He couldn't stand remembering it…

Finally, Logan arrived. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He knew it had to stop, knew that he had to go on…but still he couldn't. Slowly he opened his eyes again. He felt his heart beating triple rhythms in his chest as his gaze fell on the small gravestone. Logan sighted and put his hands into his jeans pockets. He did nothing more than standing in front of the tomb and looking at it, hoping that this visit would help him to get rid of his nightmares.

Suddenly, his fear strengthened and his senses kicked in. Logan looked around, tried to see, hear or smell anything which could explain his inner turmoil. But there was nothing to be seen…

Just as Logan turned his head again to look at the stone, the rug was pulled out from under him and he fell hard to the ground. Instinctively, he popped his claws and tried to steady himself as the earth began to shake heavily again, even stronger as before. He could feel the ground being torn apart, heard the anxious screams of the students onside the building…

As soon as it began as soon it was over again. Heavy breathing and concentrating on calming himself, Logan stood up and looked around. His claws still visible, he sensed someone on his closer surroundings. Logan gritted his teeth and raised his arms. If someone wanted to attack him, he would be ready…

Angrily he turned around, his claws ready to strike as he froze. Slowly he lowered his arms and his claws retracted behind his knuckles. Logan thought his heart stopped beating as he reminded himself to breath. Hardly breathing he tumbled backwards, his eyes fixed on the person standing in front of him. "It can't be…", he said barely audible.


	5. Chapter 4

**Changes Chapter 4**

Hank helped Storm onto her feet. "Are you alright?", he asked worried since the shake had took them by surprise.

"Yeah, I guess so…", she said holding her head. "We never had so strong earthquakes…especially not twice in such a short period…"

"Well, at least you nobody can blame you", he joked.

"I think the Professor's right. Something's going on…", she said even more worried than before. Storm's eyes caught something on the outside and she quickly turned her heard towards it. "Oh my God…", she almost yelled and ran towards the door, leaving the other mutant behind her.

Hank watched her. "What's going on?", he asked puzzled and walked towards the window. "Oh no…"

Logan was still standing on the same spot, unable to move an inch. His mind as well as his heart was racing, hindering him to think properly.

"Logan!", he heard someone yelling behind him. Then he realized it. He saw the horrification in the face before him and turned around just in time to see Storm's eyes changing their color.

"Logan, get down!", she screamed again and raised her hand, ready to strike.

"No!", he yelled and jumped into the way. Soon, as a strong lightning bolt hit him, he felt the pain rushing through his entire body, knocking him off his feet and causing him to pass out.

Hank, who had gotten the Professor, arrived with him and the X-Men at the scenery, just in time to see Storm preparing her next attack.

"Get away from him!", she yelled angrily and caused the clouds to darken above them. Again an even stronger lightning bolt made its way from heaven into her hand. "I said get away!"

"Storm, wait!", Professor X shouted, but it was too late…

The bolt flew through the garden, burning the grass underneath it. A giant explosion sounded, strengthening the light of the bolt, blinding everyone who was watching the scene.

Rogue was taking hold of Bobby's arm in fear who gave her a quick glace and put an arm around her.

Anxiously, Hank and the Professor watched as the Phoenix eyes blackened and things began to float through the air. "Can't you do anything?", Beast asked and his eyes even widened as he saw the Phoenix raising to the air, right above the still unconscious Logan. Saw how her body was covered in blinding red flames.

"I'm afraid I can't…", Charles answered barely audible.

Helplessly, they had to watch as the Phoenix's eyes fixed on Storm. They felt the earth shaking again; saw the day turning into night… A whirlwind thicker than anything they had ever seen began to lock them up. The flames around her began to gather above herm creating a giant bird.

Storm watched it and backed away, heavily breathing. This had to be the end, she thought and saw how the giant firebird spread its wings above its master, ready to strike and swallow everything in its way…

"Bobby!", she heard Rogue scream. Soon he was in her right side, followed by Rogue, Hank and Kitty.

"No!", Storm shouted to drown the immense sound of the whirlwind. "She will kill you! Go!"

"No!", Bobby said. "We're one team. That's what you've taught us!"

"We stand together and fall together!", Rogue said, her eyes fixed on the beast before them.

In the meanwhile, the Professor had telepathically ordered those students inside the building to hide. He himself was shielded by Collossus. He had tried to talk to Phoenix mentally, but had known before that she would shield him off. He himself was breathing heavily as he watched the X-Man standing on one side and the Phoenix with its now giant firebird on the other.

"You won't kill again!", Hank hissed angrily, facing the beast before them.

Phoenix's inhuman eyes began to glow, feeding the firebird above her with her fury and rage.

Storm watched as trees around them began to disappear one after the next, just as it had happened before with the soldiers and mutants on Alcatraz after she rose. She felt the fear in every inch of her body, knowing that they could never win against her. She had been right. Her feelings hadn't betrayed her. And now she knew what had been going on: The Phoenix had returned to finish her business.

Storm, who was standing in front of the younger X-Men could feel her skin burning. The beast would burn her to ashes, she knew that, but she wouldn't go without giving her a fight, even if it was senseless. Again she raised her hand, laying all her rage and anger into her probably last strike, causing Bobby to do the same. Both of them pushed their power to its limits, but the more they tried, the more the firebird grew.

"It's useless! Your just feeding it with more power!", Kitty said.

Rogue watched as more things around them were caught into the whirlwind, thrown around and finally destroyed. Now she could imagine how the battle on Alcatraz must have been for her friends. She felt her fear growing stronger inside of her.

"Marie! Get away from there!", she heard the Professor in her head.

"No!"

"Marie…You have no power left within you. Get away…"

Rogue looked at her teacher and shook her head. "She's gonna kill us anyway. At least I die with my friends."

Professor X stared at her, but realized that she was not going to change her mind. And that she was right… Nothing could save them from the Phoenix. There was no mutant in this world that was in the possession of a power which could even slightly be compared to hers… He saw into the eyes of his former student. "Predator eyes…", he thought sadly. "The eyes of a killer…" He asked himself again if all this was his fault. If he could have prevented it…

Suddenly, the giant firebird shouted out an unbelievable shrill cry and he watched as it rose even higher, spreading its wings even more than before. The Phoenix raised both arms.

"That's it…", Storm said.

The giant bird opened its beak, its devilish eyes having a look on the X-Men who had anxiously moved closer together.

"She's gonna strike!", Kitty shouted. "Watch it!"

Rogue instinctively reached for Bobby's hand who put himself in front of her. Again the bird cried out loudly, while the Phoenix pointed towards the X-Men showing the bird were to go.

"Oh my God…", Hank said, backing away as the giant firebird flew directly towards them to hit them full frontal. He saw how it opened its beak widely to swallow them all at once…

"That's the end…", he said barely audible and swallowed.

They could hear the Professor scream but it already seemed so far away for them… Panicky, they moved even more closely together, trying to protect each other.

From the corner of her blinded eye, Rogue saw something moving underneath the Phoenix. "Logan!", she screamed as loud as she could, hoping that it was him she saw.

Slowly raising his head and trying to pull all his senses together, Logan opened his eyes. Shocked he watched ash a giant firebird flew towards his friends, burning everything in its way to ashes. "God…", he said looking up, fear making its way to his heart. It was happening again, he thought. His eyes met the ones of the Phoenix who was looking back at him with black eyes. The same eyes he had looked into before. "Jean!", he shouted despaired, hoping to reach her somehow. "Stop it! Please, stop it!"

"No!", she hissed violently.

Logan stood up, his eyes never leaving hers. "Please! You don't have to do this! No one wants to harm you! They don't know it was you before. Jean, please!" Anxiously, he looked towards the X-Men who were screaming in mortal fear.

"She attacked you!", the Phoenix said in her daemonic voice.

The Professor bent forward and frowned. Had he just heard correctly?

"She thought you were going to attack me. Jean, she didn't know it was you standing in front of me. Please, stop it!"

The bird slowed down, stopping in front of the X-Men, but still threatening them.

"She will do it again! All of them will!"

Logan shook his head. "No! No, they won't!" He swallowed, looking for words which might help him to convince her. "I won't let them. I'll protect you!"

She frowned and sank back to the ground. Her demonic face came closer to his. "And what makes you so sure you can do it?"

He breathed heavily. "I told you…", he said cautiously touching her face gently. "I would die for you, Jeannie…"

With a loud noise the firebird exploded, causing Storm and the others to scream. The bright light of the explosion forced them to shield their eyes. Instinctively, Logan had pulled Jean into his arms to protect her.

As they opened their eyes again, they saw him holding her tight. Slowly, the X-Men got up. "Is everyone all right?", Storm asked barely able to stand or breath. The others nodded. She looked towards the Professor who gave her a short sign to wait. She frowned and turned her head towards Logan, and then she understood what Professor X meant.

"It's over…ssht…it's over…", she heard Logan whispering and watched Jean taking hold on him. He had closed his eyes and tried to calm himself. At the same time he was stroking her back with one hand, trying to calm desperate sobs and holding her all over shaking body tight to his.

"I'm sorry…God, I'm so sorry!", Jean cried and clung to him as if she was drowning.

"It's okay", he said calmly. "Come on. I'll take you inside…" Cautiously, he pulled her up and carried her inside the house, the looks of the others following them.

Storm had reached the Professor, her eyes on Logan. "What the hell did just happen?", she asked still out of breath.

Bobby, Rogue and Kitty stopped next to her and where also looking at the mansion. The Professor turned his head smiling. "A simple thing…"

"What?", Ororo asked confused.

He turned his wheelchair and the other followed him. "She wanted to protect him."

"Sorry…what!", she asked again, thinking that she might have misunderstood him.

"But Storm didn't attack Logan…", Rogue said as confused as her teacher was.

"That's right. But she thought she did. She only saw Logan fell down to the ground and this was the point where her fear took over. She thought she had to protect him", he explained calmly.

"So she destroyed the whole garden here and wanted to kill us, just because she wanted to protect him?", Hank asked sarcastically, while shaking his head in disbelief. "That can't be true!"

The Professor still smiled. "I know it sounds unbelievable… But haven't you noticed that she only attacked you?"

"He's right!", Kitty finally said, turning towards the others. "If she intended to kill us ll, she could have killed Logan easily."

"While talking of him…You should check on him. Since his healing factor is as good as down, I think he took quiet a lot of damage from me", Storm said while climbing up the stairs.

"He said he's fine", the Professor answered and they knew he had contacted Logan telepathically. "We should leave the two of them alone right now. I don't think she will do any more damage today."

"I hope you're right!", Storm said while she closed the door.

"Oh and Ororo…please change it!", he said before disappearing into his rooms.

With a short glance to the outside, she figured what he was talking about. For a short moment her eyes went white and soon the sky cleared up again, leaving a red sky and a sun sinking at the horizon…


	6. Chapter 5

_First of all, thank you so much for the nice reviews!  I am glad that you like it.  
I have already pre-written 35 pages by now, but I still have to type them. Hope you will like this chapter here too. And to answer your questions: Rogue will play a bigger role, but till the point I have written, she's not something you can call a major character. But I have already made plans for her. ;) And Scott will come back, but not so soon. So, thanks again and I hope you will review on this one, too. ;) _

**Changes Chapter 5**

In the meanwhile, Logan gently laid the still shaking Jean down onto his bed. He realized that he was staring at her… He still believed that his mind was playing games with him, thought that the Professor might have knocked him out completely and he was now captured in his self-made dream world…

Still, her watered green eyes, which were looking at him, seemed so real. He frowned and slowly sat down on the edge of the bed. An uncomfortable silence filled the room and both of them just stared at the other.

"They'll never forgive me…", she finally said, barely audible.

"Of course they will…"

She shook her head. "If you hadn't intervened…I would have killed them…" Again tears filled her eyes.

"Jean…"

Suddenly, Jean sat up, grabbed his face and stared into his eyes. Logan saw the despair in then, but also a weird, nearly crazy expression… His heart began to beat triple rhythms again. "Don't…", was everything he said while shaking his head and touching her hands with his.

"Please", she begged and tears were running down her face. "I can't control her…she's too powerful and I don't want to hurt or kill anyone of you again…"

"No…", Logan said sincerely, causing her to bend forward and start to sob even harder. He sighted frustrated and took her face into his hands. "Look at me!" Gently he pulled her head up and looked into her wet eyes. "You beat her down there, Jeannie. And you can do it again, I know that!"

Again she shook her heard with closed eyes causing more tears to wet her cheeks.

"Yes you can!", said Logan louder and wiped them away.

Angry she opened her eyes. "I know what I am capable of when I lose control, Logan! I know what I did. To Scott, the Professor, to you…"

He closed his eyes and sighted again.

"I can still see it when I close my eyes. See how I destroyed them, the joy of it, even how much you suffered…"

"And I still see you dying…", he angrily gave back before he could stop himself.

Jeans eyes widened in shock and she looked at him, watched his head turning away from her. "I'm sorry…"

"Do you really remember everything?", he cut her off and was now looking at her again.

She nodded and watched her hand taking hold of his. "Everything…"

He stood up and immediately felt her tense. He gently pushed her down. "You should sleep now."

Jean watched him tucking her in and her heart started to race as he turned around. She instinctively grabbed his arm. "Don't go!" She was scared to death, afraid that she would immediately lose control if she was alone.

Logan looked down at her smiling. "I'm not leaving, Red. I only wanted to turn the lights off. So no reason to be scared…" He quickly squeezed her hand and she let go, but still watched every step of him.

After the light was turned off, Logan took the second pillow and another blanket. He put both things to the ground. As he laid down, he took one of her into his. "Everything will be alright. You'll see, Jeannie."

Jean rolled over to the side where he was, keeping her hand in his, feeling that it helped her to calm herself. "Thank you…", she whispered.

"If anything's wrong, wake me!", Logan said. Before he allowed himself for the first time in weeks to sleep, he made sure that she was already sleeping. Hoping for both of them to have a dreamless night…

It was in the middle of the night when Storm woke up. First, she blinked, but them her eyes widened in shock as she realized that the whole room was shaking. Within less than a second she was at the door and looked down the corridor. She saw many students standing in their door, too, looking around. Some confused, some in fear.

"Another earthquake?" Rogue came towards her.

"And I wonder who s responsible for it…", Storm said knowing while raising an eyebrow.

"Do you think he's okay?", the girl asked worried. "I mean…he's alone wit her…" Rogue looked towards Logan's door at the end of the corridor.

Storm nodded. "If anyone can handle her than him. She can't kill him. At least that's what the Professor said."

Nevertheless, Rogue could see that she was also worried. "Don't you think we should check on him?"

Storm thought about it for a few seconds, before she finally nodded. "Would do no harm…"

In contrast to Ororo, Logan had been rudely awoken immediately after the room had started to shake violently- He had found Jean shaken all over and huddled in a corner of the room. With a jump he had been at her side and had immediately pulled her into his arms. Since then he tried to calm her and kept on at her. "Come on, Jean…concentrate! Calm down!", Logan said and pulled her even closer as her body started to tense violently. "Please, Jeannie. Everything's alright. Fight her! You're stronger than her!"

Her daemonic, veined face shot up and black eyes starred into his. "No, she's not!"

Logan backed away a bit, being surprised that the Phoenix had already taken over. He heard his door open and smelled Rogue and Storm.

"Logan, are you alright?", Storm was able to ask before the Phoenix mentally threw her backwards against the wall on the corridor. Groaning she fell to the ground, causing the students who watched the scene to scream in panic.

"Get out, Rogue!", Logan yelled at the younger woman before something would happen to her too. "I said go!"

Rogue nodded and closed the door again, while he turned his head again to face the Phoenix. "And now back to you!"

She smiled at him self-assured. "You can't save her!", she hissed, while her eyes blackened even more.

Violently Logan grabbed her shoulders and pushed her against the wall. "Get out of her head!"

"Why should I", Phoenix hissed and grabbed his arms in return. "You can do nothing against me!"

"Oh really?", he said smiling. "I can kill you, remember that?"

She snorted. "No you can't. Killing me means killing her!"

"Oh, I think she would be glad getting rid off you!"

Rapidly, she widened her eyes, causing him to fly backwards, too. But Logan had been faster and had grabbed her arm tightly, pulling her with him. Both crashed hard against his door, causing it to burst and both hit the opposite wall as Storm had done before. Students were screaming again and some ran, others backed off. Storm, who was holding her arm, and Rogue were standing aside, watching the whole scenery and also the Professor had already arrived.

Angrily, Logan got up, facing his now furious opposite. "Surprised, eh?", he asked, preparing himself for her next attack.

"I should have killed you!", she hissed, gritting her teeth.

"Too bad, luv. You can't kill me!", he gave back shrugging. With a jump he threw her to the ground, using his weight to keep her from moving. "Come on, Jean. Talk to me!"

The Phoenix screamed underneath him, fighting physically against Logan who had to use his whole strength to steady her. Storm turned around and looked anxiously at the Professor who tried to talk to Jean mentally. Soon, he shook his head. "She doesn't let me in."

"We must do something!", she answered and turned around as she heard Logan yell in pain. She saw that he was pressed against the wall, arms and legs spread away from his body. He clenched his teeth, while the Phoenix stood in front of him.

"Let him go!", Rogue screamed and wanted to help him as Bobby hold her back.

"Don't!"

The eyes of the Phoenix were still on Logan who thought that his body was torn apart. The wall behind him began to crumble as she pushed him stronger against it. "You forgot that I can still squash your body…" She mentally sent a wave towards him, ripping off the skin of his bones, exposing his adamantium skeleton again. In joy she watched him groaning as her wave hit him, watched as his healing factor rebuilt his skin again.

"Damn it, do something!", Rogue screamed and hid her face at Bobby's shoulder.

"Don't even try!", Phoenix hissed as she felt the Professor in her mind. With a wave she sent his wheelchair backwards.

"Please…Jean…talk to me!", Logan tried it again, fighting against the pain.

"She can't hear you!"

Bobby was standing in front of Rogue now and concentrated on the Phoenix, trying hard not to think so that she would be warned by his actions. As quickly as he could he shot an ice beam towards her, making her lose control for a second. Before she could react again, Logan had pulled himself together and extracted his claws on one hand. This time he pushed her against the wall.

"Kill her!", he heard Ororo scream. "Do it, Logan!"

"Sorry, Jean!", Logan said and pushed his claws into her shoulder, causing the Phoenix to scream in pain. Her grabbed her shoulders again and started to shake her. "Come on, Jean, fight her!", he yelled at her, bringing his hands to her face and made her look at him. "You have to fight her! Think about something, Red. Something happy! Something which is important to you!"

Tears started to flow down her face again. He could see her fighting, saw how much she suffered.

"Please, Jeannie…", he now begged, grabbing her face even stronger. "I need you! Fight her! You're stronger than her. You can make it. I'll help you! Please!" Logan was aware that everyone was watching them, but he didn't care. He didn't care what the others were thinking, didn't care that he showed his feelings openly right now. All he cared about was her. He couldn't lose her again…

Unaware that she had read his mind, he began to stroke her face gently, gave her a quick kiss in the forehead before he pulled her close. Slowly her wet eyes turned green again and her body collapsed. She sank to her knees, pulling him with her and began to sob heavily.

Relieved, the Professor passed his hand over his face. He watched Logan pulling Jean even closer to him, letting her cry loudly on his shoulder.

"Please…", they heard her saying. "Please, kill me! Please!" Jean clung to him as if she was drowning.

He buried his face into her neck, sighting. The more Phoenix had hurt him before, the more it hurt him to hear her pleas. He sat down on the ground so that she was on his lap now.

"Please…", she begged again and buried her face even deeper into his shoulder.

Storm looked at the Professor and even if he immediately knew what she was thinking, he shook his head. "We talk about this later!", he said. "Everyone! Go back to sleep. The day will come soon and we do not want you to fall asleep during class". He smiled at the students who obeyed and walked away to their rooms. Still, the Professor was thankful that they couldn't read his mind just now or feel his inner turmoil. "The three of you should leave now too!", he said to Rogue, Bobby and Storm, who glanced at Logan and Jean, before they nodded and disappeared.

Prof X waited until everyone was gone before he came closer. Logan who had finally managed to calm Jean looked up at him exhausted.

"Take her to the lab and take care of her shoulder. Then go back to sleep."

Logan nodded and helped Jean to her feet. Gently he laid one arm around her and walked with her down the corridor towards the elevators. With a worried and thoughtful face the Professor watched them leave.

Logan had helped Jean to sit on the table in the lab, while he looked for bandages and something to disinfect the wound. As he turned around again, he noticed that she was more than a complete mess. Powerless and with red eyes from crying she starred at something imaginable before her, completely unaware of her surroundings. Logan frowned and began to examine her wound carefully. He hadn't cut her deep just as much as wanted to get her attention and even the bleeding had already stopped. Slowly, he pulled the shirt aside which she wore and took the disinfectant. "This could burn a bit", he warned her calmly and poured a bit of the liquid onto a wad of cotton wool. Gently, he dabbed her wound, noticing that she didn't move a bit. After Logan finished treating her shoulder, he turned around just to find her starring at him. She really is a mess, he thought.

"Why can't you just do it?", she asked with a monotone voice, looking at him with completely empty eyes.

Logan sighted again and leaned against the table. "Because I can't, Jean…"

"That's no answer."

"It's the answer I give you…"

"I lost it again…", she said. "Next time, someone might die. Is that what you want?"

He folded his arms. "Of course not!"

"Then do it!", she demanded.

"I won't…"

"Why?"

Logan leaned forward, placed his hands beside her legs and looked directly into her eyes. "Because I have faith in you, Jean!"

She backed off a little.

"Because I know that you are stronger than her. Damn it, Jean, you're the strongest woman I've ever met. And as long as you do not believe in yourself, she will always come back…" He watched how her head sunk. He could only guess how tired she was or what it looked like within her. Gently he laid one hand on hers. "Come on. We go back to sleep."

Logan helped her getting off the table and lead her back to the elevator. In it Jean leaned against the wall, feeling no power left within her. She felt completely empty…as if the Phoenix had taken all her power away as she disappeared. She could feel her go week at the knees, but couldn't do anything against it.

"Hey!", Jean heard Logan say as he caught her. She rested her head on his shoulder. She felt too tired… Logan pulled her up into his arms and carried her back towards his room. As he laid her down again, he grabbed his pillow and the blanket from the ground and laid both down next to her on the bed, remembering that he had let go off her hand before she had freaked out. This time, Logan laid down next to her and gently pulled her into his arms. Within less than a minute, he too, was asleep.


	7. Chapter 6

_I had problems to upload anything, so it took longer.  The upload for documents was down on my site. It didn't work, so I am sorry that Chapter 5 and 6 were announced, but the document wasn't available. Well, here's chapter 6. Enjoy and please review! ;)_

**Changes Chapter 6**

She felt save and comfortable when she woke up. The sun had already risen and few beams touched her face. Slowly, Jean opened her eyes, blinked once or twice before she finally realized where she was. When she tried to move she felt another body laying close next to her and saw an arm gently resting on her hip. Jean sighted and closed her eyes again; smiling for the first time and enjoying the feeling it gave her. She could feel Logan moving a bit behind her and began to wonder how late it already was. When Jean opened her eyes again, she realized that he must have put his watch on his bedside table. Slowly she reached over him, trying to grab his watch. Since she couldn't reach it, she bent over, resting one hand on his chest, while her stomach touched his. Finally, Jean reached she object…

"Already awake?"

She jerked back at the low sound of his voice.

"Sorry!", he said immediately as he noticed it.

"It's okay…I only thought you were still sleeping.", Jean gave back and laid his watch on her side of the bed.

Logan stretched and sat up a bit. "So, how late is it?"

"6:15 a.m.", she answered and laid down again. For her it was too early, especially on a Saturday and because she knew that everyone would be asleep at least until 11:00 a.m.

"Too early!", Logan grunted and laid back down, too. "How's ya shoulder doin'?", he asked after a while.

"Good", Jean answered.

He gave her a quick glance, knowing that she must felt embarrassed because of the events at night. "Look, there's no need for you to feel bad. No one's gotten hurt…"

She snorted. "Easy for you to say…"

"You heard the Professor. We'll talk about it later, so we still have some time to rest."

She opened her eyes and looked at him. "You voluntary go back to sleep? How come?"

He shrugged. "Well, since it's the first time I can sleep without having those nightmares…I'll want to take advantage of it…", Logan teased her.

"You mean of me…", she gave back.

"Whatever!"

She gave him a short smile, before she turned around and allowed him to pull her close again. It didn't take long before they drifted off to sleep again…

On the next morning, everyone sat in the kitchen having breakfast. No one really dared to talk about the last night, especially since the Professor had said that he wanted to talk about it with those who were affected.

Rogue sat next to Bobby eating ham and eggs, while he was talking to Peter about the newest videogames. Ororo sat quietly at the front of the large table, deep lost in thought. Suddenly, everyone stopped talking and looked towards the door as Logan came in, still in the same clothes as he had worn the evening before. He only gave them a short look and grunted a more or less clear "mornin'", before he turned his attention towards the fridge.

"Morning!", Rogue answered and watched him as closely as the others did. "How're ya doing?"

"Good", he said, while taking a tray from the stack.

"Where's Jean?" Ororo finally asked the question everyone was thinking about.

"Upstairs", Logan gave back without taking further notice of her.

"What are you doing!", she asked since he kept on putting food and something to drink on the tray.

Logan turned around, closing the fridge with a short movement of his hip. "What does it look like?", he asked raising one eyebrow, while walking outside the door. "I made breakfast."

"Well at least he eats again…", Bobby smirked and continued with his meal.

"Whatever…" Ororo shook her head and stood up, getting more milk from the fridge. "Great!", she cursed and slammed the door shut.

"What is it?", Rogue asked worried.

"He took the whole milk with him… Now I have to go and get new one!" With that she went out the door, hearing the laughter of the others still at the end of the corridor.

Jean was looking up as she heard the door open. She couldn't believe that she was able to sleep through the rest of the night. She couldn't even remember anything that had happened, had gotten confused as she had seen her wounded shoulder.

"Hey!", she heard Logan saying and watched him closing the door. "You're already awake?"

Jean sat up as he came closer. "Yeah, I just awoke."

"How was your night? Or let's say the rest of it?", he asked and sat down on the edge of his bed, with the tray on his lab.

"Well, besides that I can't really remember anything… I think good… You made breakfast?"

"Yeah, thought you might be hungry."

"Thanks", she smiled vaguely and moved to the side so tat he had more space. Quietly they began to eat, barely looking at the other. After finishing their meal, Logan noticed that Jean's thoughts had drifted off to some other places. Gently he touched her shoulder, asking for her attention. "You want to use the bathroom first?"

She nodded and got up slowly. As she reached the door, she turned around again, giving him a sad look. "I lost t again, didn't I?", she asked quietly as memories began to come back one after the next.

As an answer Logan nodded slowly. She sighted and closed the door behind her. "Do you need anything?", he asked.

"No thanks, I'm fine."

Logan took the empty tray into his hands again and headed back to the kitchen again. He was glad that she ate something, but he was still worried about her mental and physical condition. Even if he was more than happy to have her back, he still didn't know what to think about it. How to act around her…especially, since no one knew why or how it happened. Had it been her powers which brought the Professor and Jean back, or the powers of someone or something else? Slowly he laid the tray down on the table and began to tidy up, hoping that she was fine upstairs.

"Logan?", he heard a well-known voice behind him and turned around. "How was the rest of the night?", Charles asked and came closer.

"Quiet."

The Professor nodded smiling. "How is she doing?"

Logan shrugged and leant against the counter, both hands resting on his hips. "She couldn't remember first what had happened after she woke up the third time."

"But she does now?"

"So it seems."

Charles nodded understanding. "I came here to ask you if you would come into my office in about an hour", he began looking directly into the eyes of his opposite, telling him in that way that it was important. "We have to discuss a few things."

Logan frowned. "I'm not sure she's coming. She's pretty much of a mess."

"Try it, will you?"

"Fine." Logan nodded and left the kitchen to look after Jean again.

When he reached his room again she sat on the bed wearing one of his shirts.

"Sorry, but…"

He waved off smiling. "It's okay. Do you want me to get some of your stuff?"

Jean nodded.

"'Kay, be right back."

A few minutes later, Logan was back holding some of her clothes in his hands, which he had gotten from her old room. He laid them down on his bed and shrugged. "Didn't know what you might have wanted."

She smiled vaguely at him. "Do you want to use the bathroom now?"

Logan thought about the Professor's request and asked himself if he should tell her about it or wait until he had a shower. Finally he nodded, grabbed some new clothes and disappeared into the other room.

When Jean heard water running she got off the bed and started to undress herself. After she had switched clothes she sat down again, holding his shirt tight to her body. While she waited, Jean looked around his room, trying to remember if anything was different since the last time she'd been here. But she couldn't determine anything, except that his room was even more a mess than ever. Without thinking about it she stood up and began to tidy up, hoping that it might help her to forget the pictures in her head for a few minutes.

After she was done she sat down again, still holding his shirt. Just in that moment the bathroom door opened and Logan came back in. Jean just watched him as he put the towel away which he had used before to dry his dark hair.

"You tidied up?", he asked stunned and was for the first time ever embarrassed. He scratched the back of his head. "Thanks…"

"You're welcome…", Jean said still looking at him.

"Jean…", he began, sitting down next to her. "The Professor…"

"…he wants to see me, right?", she asked barely audible.

"Yeah. But if you don't want to…it's okay. You don't have to if you're not ready for it…" Logan looked at her from the side.

She sighted, stroking his shirt and pressing it even more against her body. "I don't know…I mean…", she began, looking down. "It even scares me to death to leave this room…"

He could smell the salty liquid which collected within her eyes. "It's okay", he said calmly. "No one can make you do it."

She looked up at him, now crying heavily. "It's even hard for me to look at you…", she sobbed so hard that he thought she would choke herself to death because of it. "So how am I supposed to look at someone who I killed? Or at the others…?"

Gently, Logan took her into his arms, allowing her to cry on his shoulder again. He noticed that she was still holding his shirt in her hands. "Jean…there's no reason for you to be afraid to look at me. I don't blame you for anything!", he said trying to calm her while stroking her back. "For me it is hard because…" Logan broke off as the memories came back to him.

"Because?", she asked into his shoulder.

"Forget it!"

Jean looked at him. "Tell me, Logan…"

"I will, but not now."

Finally, she nodded. "Would you mind going alone?", she asked.

"As long as you're okay here all alone…"

"Yeah,…I think I will sleep a bit more or read a book…", she looked around, avoiding his gaze.

Logan noticed it. "Hey, if you want me to stay…"

"I'll be fine,…really…", she tried to convince him. "And if anything's wrong…you'll notice it…"

He kept on looking at her for a few more seconds. "'Kay. Be right back!", he said before he left the room.

Jean immediately felt the insecurity and fear taking over her body as soon as the door was shut. She pressed his shirt closer and tried to concentrate on it, hoping to keep the control she had when she knew that he was close by…

Downstairs, Logan entered the Professor's office and saw him sitting behind his desk, while Ororo ad Hank sat in the two chairs in front of it.

"Hello Logan", the Professor greeted him and advised him to sit down on a third chair. Suspiciously, Logan watched the other two mutants who watched him closely.

"Where's she?", Hank asked him just as he had sat down.

"Not comin'", was all Logan answered. "And I would like to finish this here quickly", he added looking at Charles.

"Afraid that she might freak out again?", Storm asked.

"Ororo!", Charles warned, since he could sense the anger coming up in the man before him.

"You saw what she did! She attacked us twice!", Storm defended herself. "And she also attacked you!", she quickly said to Logan before he could say anything.

"I know. I've been there remember?", he shot back.

"I think she's a risk. Her powers are absolutely instable. She only needs to freak out once completely and she could kill us all!"

The Professor sighted. "I appreciate your opinion, Ororo…"

"Our!", Hank interrupted. "She has a point here. You didn't see everything she's capable of! You should have seen her on Alcatraz." He looked directly into Charles eyes. "The Phoenix is a cold-blood killer. She killed mutants and humans back then, so what gives us the certainty that this won't happen again?"

"It's Jean we're talking about here!", Logan said raising his voice and bending forward. "If those damn soldiers hadn't attacked her, she wouldn't have freaked out!"

"And what makes you so sure of it?"

Logan jumped up. "Because I saw it!"

Hank did the same, staring warningly at his opposite. "You saw it or you wanted to see it?"

Logan clenched his fist, stepping one step forward and feeling his blood starting to boil. "Why don't you…"

"Enough!", the Professor said loudly, causing them to stop immediately. "There's no need of arguing like this here." Both men stepped back, not breaking eye contact.

"We can't risk the students being hurt", Ororo said calmly. "And even you should see, Logan that she is a risk as long as she isn't able to control her powers!"

Logan put his hands on his hips, looking down at her. "And what do you want to do, he? Throw her out and tell her not to come back until she's the same as before?" He shook his head and raised a hand. "That won't happen, Storm! She will never be the same again Never! Do you get that?"

"No reason for you to yell at me!", she gave back angrily. "It doesn't change the facts! If she was here, she could have said something by herself."

"Damn it, Storm! She's terrified! She's afraid of you, of herself…she remembers everything, so use your head just for a second if possible, and think about how she's feeling! How would you feel if you knew you did those things?"

"Well, I didn't and I don't have the power to…", she hissed, folding her arms before her breast as he interrupted her again.

"And you're calling yourself her friend!"

"Jean was my friend!", Storm gave back completely furious and jumped up. "And I don't know who she is now! Neither do you Logan!"

He drew himself up to his full height, appearing even more threatening. "It's her. And it was her before down in the garden before you attacked her and made her furious."

Storm was just about to answer as the Professor intervened. "That's not leading anywhere if we go on like this!", he said calmly, hoping that his calm voice would have an effect on the mutants before him. He knew how dangerous Logan could become if he got pissed off, but also that Storm knew how to fight. He looked alternately from Storm and Hank to Logan and back again. He couldn't understand when it happened, but he could see the giant gap between the X-Men. He sighted. "No one's leaving or going to be thrown out the school. It's still her home…"

"Yeah?", Logan asked ironically and frowned. "Hasn't much of a home right now, don't ya think?"

"Calm down, boy!", Hank said stressed.

"Stop calling me boy, fur ball!", he shot back angrily.

"Would you stop it!", Charles hissed closing his eyes for a brief moment. "We have to talk to Jean…otherwise no decision will be made upon her, is that clear?"

"Whatever, you know my opinion", Storm answered. "As long as she endangers the students I'm against her being here."

Logan snorted with his hands still on his hips, head shaking.

"What!", she asked angrily.

"Remind me of it!"

"Of what?"

Logan stepped closer looking her directly into the eyes. "That if you ever need help I won't help you and if you ever freak out, as you call it, I'll gladly kill you!"

Hank stepped between the two of them collaring Logan. "That's enough!"

"Take your hands off me!", Logan hissed angrily.

"Enough!", Charles said loudly, sensing that Logan was on the edge of his patience.

Logan pushed Hank roughly aside, giving him a threatening look before he stepped back to the door.

"You didn't mean it…", he heard Storm asking calmly.

He turned around, looking at her with cold eyes. "I always mean what I say, you should know that by now."

"Is that how you treat your friends?", she asked in disbelief and very angry.

"No!", he said. "That's the way you treat your friends, 'Ro. They become a problem, okay, we get rid off them. At least that's how you treat Jean."

"And the animal is different…?", Hank hissed.

"The _animal_, pal, stays to his friends no matter what!"

"Even if they become a threat?"

"Especially then!"

Hank nodded. "Strange, because you were the one who killed her…"

Logan's eyes darkened and the Professor thought he would immediately kill Hank. "Because she begged me to do it…"

"Really? Isn't she begging again?"

"What the hell do you know?", Logan yelled.

Charles shook his head. It couldn't be that 4 months could have changes everything so much… "I suggest you stay with her until she feels better", he finally said to Logan. "We can discuss things then."

"And what if…"

"Storm", he waved off. "He stays with her until she settled things with herself." He watched Logan suddenly turning his head towards the door, paying no longer attention to them.

Storm sighted. "As long as the last night doesn't happen again,…the students were scared to death…"

"So is she…", Logan hissed, still looking at the door. "You've no idea how much she's suffering."

"Do you?", Hank asked.

"In contrast to you I know it. You're not there for her if she needs help, if she has nightmares or is sitting shaking all over in an edge of the room. She's even scared to leave it alone…", he turned towards the door again. "Especially the two of you should know what it feels like to be regarded as a threat by one's own family." He opened the door, but before he left he turned around again. "Besides, she was at the door as you talked about her…"

Storms eyes widened and she stepped forward, wanted to say something, but Logan was already gone…


	8. Chapter 7

_Thanks for the nice reviews again! I couldn't type up much yesterday, since we had a pretty bad thunderstorm, but for it I have written up to page 55 now. : ) So pretty much to type u. I only hope that I will be able to type up more before my exams start at college. Well, I hope you will like this chapter ( I think it's the longest so far…) too and that you will review on it. ; )_

**Changes Chapter 7**

When he reached his room again, Logan found Jean standing at the window looking outside. Silently, he closed the door. "Why didn't you come in?", he asked her, knowing that she must have known he would smell her immediately. He stepped behind her.

"There was no need for it…", she answered calmly. "I heard what they said…"

"Especially then you should have entered, Jean…"

"So that the can tell me straight ahead that they want me to leave!"

He shook his head. "Chuck doesn't want you to leave, Jean. Neither do I."

"No, he hopes that I can _settle things_…"

"Jean…"

"I ruined it… I can never gain back their trust, not after what I've done…" Her head sank down.

Logan came closer, now standing right behind her.

"I destroyed my own family, Logan…"

"No, you didn't, Jean…"

She started to sob again. "Why am I here!", she asked crying. "So that I can pay for my actions? Hell couldn't be much worse…"

"Don't say something like that! You still have a family, Jean. And this family lives and cares about you…"

She laughed sarcastically. "Who? The Professor?"

"And me…", he said barely audible. "Jean, I told you I'll protect you, no matter what. If you want to go, I'll go. I'm not leaving your side anymore, Jeannie…"

Slowly she turned around, feeling moved by his words. "How? How can you say that after all I've done…?"

He laid one hand on her cheek, stroking it gently. "Because it wasn't you who did it. You're not capable of such things…"

"How do you want to know…?"

"Because I know you, Jean! And since I beat the animal in me, I know that you'll be able to beat it in you, too." He smiled at her, causing her just to cry harder.

"Will you help me?", she asked while sobbing harder.

"Gently he took her into his arms, letting her cry on his shoulder. "Of course I will…"

They just stood there and embraced another. Jean rested her head on his chest, the eyes closed. "What time is it?", she asked softly.

"Past 3 p.m. …You're hungry?"

She nodded.

"Let's go eat something then…", Logan said holding her hand. "Do you want me to get something?"

Jean looked down thinking. "I'll want to try it…"

"You're sure?"

She nodded, but still he could read in her eyes that she was afraid and insecure. "'Kay…let's try then." He led her towards the door and opened it. Slowly Jean walked out of his room, never leaving his side or letting go of his hand. "If it's too much for you to handle…", he began as she nodded. "I'll let you know…"

"Good." Together they slowly walked the way down to the kitchen.

After he had led Jean down to the kitchen and they had finished eating, they'd went back to his room. Logan had sensed Jean's fear and tension the whole time through, wishing he could help her somehow… After they'd returned to his room they'd spent the evening sitting on his bed, she resting her head on his shoulder, he holding her tight and gently stroking over her back.

In the following weeks, Jean did her best to avoid everyone. If she left the room than only with Logan on her side, believing that only he could help her shutting down the Phoenix, but also needing his closeness. Jean still even hadn't talked to the Professor, yet. She couldn't stand looking into his eyes after what she's done, even if she knew that he wasn't blaming her. But still she felt guilty, believed that everything was her fault and couldn't open his door when she stood in front of it. She couldn't even understand how Logan could stand being close to her day after day, allowing her to stay in his room, to share his bed. She had hurt him badly and she wanted to kill him back then… Jean could remember the pain he had to endure when the Phoenix had attacked him. She remembered him fighting his way towards her, how desperately he fought against the pain which had weakened him and had caused his body to use most of his power for healing the injuries. Nevertheless, she could also remember his last words… Jean had known it before, but hearing them from him had nearly torn her apart…

As she woke up one morning she directly looked into Logan's face. He was still sleeping, which surprised her since he usually always awoke either with or before her. Jean took her time to study his sleeping form. Her eyes were wandering over his face while her fingers gently traced his features. She couldn't tell why she did it, she just felt like doing it. As her fingers touched his mouth, he snorted and twisted his face. While moving he slowly opened his eyes. Jean blushed and gave him a shy smile. "Morning."

"Mornin'", he gave back, looking at her suspiciously.

She looked down, breaking eye contact. "Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you…"

Logan stretched and rolled over so that he laid on his back now, rubbing his eyes. "No problem. How was your night?", he asked looking at her again.

Jean shrugged. "Okay, I think…"

Logan rolled over again, resting his head in his hands smirking. "You think!"

"Well, since nothing changed over night I think I slept through…"

He gave her one of his rare smiles which made her heart jump for a moment. "Any plans for today?"

"No, you?"

He shook his head. "Not yet…"

An uncomfortable silence filled the room and Logan felt that she was thinking about something important. Since Jean was staring, he put a hand to her cheek. "What's wrong?"

She looked up, exchanging glances with him. "I was thinking…"

"About what?"

"Moving back to my old room…"

Abruptly, Logan sat up, his heart racing and staring at her disbelief. "Why?", he asked shocked.

She sighed. "Logan, this is your room", Jean began to explain calmly. "I don't want you to get rid off your privacy. Everyone needs a place for himself and I am hindering you…"

"That's bullshit!"

She almost jumped as he raised his voice, looking shocked at him. Logan noticed it and tried to concentrate on calming himself. "Look", he began and turned around so that he now sat opposite to her. "You can stay as long as you want here, Jeannie… I wouldn't even mind if you stayed forever. I already got used to your presence."

"Really?", she asked feeling insecure.

"I wouldn't say it otherwise, would I? And I know that you are afraid of being alone. I feel it every time we leave the room…"

She looked down, staring at her hand and felt embarrassed. She had hoped he wouldn't notice it.

"There's no need for you to leave, Jean. I'd be the last one to say no to have you as my roommate." He winked.

Jean smiled because of his last sentence, knowing that it was his intention to make her smile. "I was being stupid…sorry…"

"Yeah, that's right. You were!", teased her and stood up, making his way towards the bath room.

"How did you do it?"

Logan stopped turning around. "Do what?"

Jean sat up. "How did you beat him?"

Finally, he knew what she was talking about. Logan stepped forward. "I didn't _beat_ him, Jean…"

Jean frowned. "But you never freak out like I do. At least I haven't seen you…"

He sighed and sat down besides her again, looking for the right words. "I learned to control him, but he's still inside of me and will ever be. I only learned to keep him calm…but it's not working always."

"How?"

"By training and because of…", he stopped not daring to say it.

Jean tried to look into his eyes. "Because of?"

"…you…", Logan finally said, returning her gaze. "You helped me control him even more."

She felt deeply moved by his words and looked down with a slight smile.

"Ask Rogue. She had met Wolverine…", he said after a few moments.

"When?", Jean asked curiously and surprised, completely paying attention to him.

"Back when Stryker attacked the mansion. I pretty much killed every soldier. The problem is that Wolverine knows no fear. If Rogue hadn't talked me into running away with them…well, I don't know what would happen then…"

"When does he take over?", she asked after a few minutes, thinking about his words.

Logan shrugged. "When I am really pissed off…or if fear takes over. When I have my back to the wall and I have to defend myself."

Jean was surprised. It was the same with her. The Phoenix took over when she got annoyed or was afraid, if her emotions went wild… Jean took his hands and looked into his eyes absolutely determined. "Teach me!", she said.

"What?", he backed off a little, not knowing what to say.

"Please, teach me, Logan! I want to control her, I want to have a life again…", she pleaded.

He didn't answer immediately. Jean was disappointed, especially because he showed no reaction. "You promised to help me…", she whispered.

" I know. And I will, Jean!", Logan answered determined. "But…"

"But?"

"It's hard, Jean. Very hard. It's like getting rid off an addiction."

"You think I am too week…" Jean's expression changed immediately and she let go of his hands. She now looked very sad and disappointed. She's thought that especially he would help her and understand her… "I was wrong", she thought. "Even he doesn't believe in me…"

"That's not true, Jean and you know that!" Logan shook his head. "But you mental shields are down…you are influenced by the thoughts of the others." He nodded towards the door to show her who he meant. "So the first thing we should be working on is to rebuild them. If you can block their thoughts again, the rest will become a bit easier…"

Jean nodded in understanding. After a few moments she looked up again smiling. To say something wasn't necessary, he knew what she wanted to tell him. Logan smiled back before he headed towards the bathroom.

Later the day, Rogue climbed up the stairs on her way to Logan's room. Cautiously, she knocked and was surprised as Jean opened the door. For a second she was unable to move or say anything. She still wasn't used to Jean being back, especially since she never met or saw her somewhere, but also that she shared the room with Logan now…

"How can I help you?", Jean asked cautiously, feeling uncomfortable.

"Oh…I just wanted to talk to Logan…", Rogue answered truthfully. "Is he here?"

"No, he's downstairs. The Professor wanted to talk to him."

"I see…" The younger woman nodded. "How're ya doing? Haven't seen you for quiet a while…"

Jean looked up in surprise, she hadn't expected this. She'd thought the girl would ran off as soon as she got an answer. "I'm getting through…", she said. "How are you? Logan said you got cured…"

"Yeah…" Rogue nodded. "I took it voluntary. And I'm fine!" She smiled.

Jean nodded and didn't know what else she could say. "Do you want to come in? You can wait for him if you want…"

"Sure!" Rogue walked into the room and looked around. "Wow", she said amazed. "First time I see his room cleared up."

Jean smiled. "Sit down."

The younger girl sat down on the bed and Jean sat down beside her. "So how is Bobby doing?"

"He's fine, too. He was a bit upset at me after I told him that I took the cure, but now it I fine for him."

"He was upset?", Jean asked surprised. "Why?"

Rogue looked at her and shrugged. "He didn't want me to do it for him. But I told him that I also did it for myself. It was so depressing, you know…not being able to touch anybody…"

"I can understand that", Jean nodded and looked down.

Rogue noticed that her opposite wasn't feeling so well. "You know…I don't want you to think that I am afraid of you or that I'm blaming you for anything. You can't be held responsible for what Phoenix did… Bobby, Kitty and Peter think the same, by the way."

Jean looked up, feeling moved and surprised at the same time. She'd never thought or expected that Rogue thought like that about her. She felt a deep happiness and relief growing within her. "Thanks…it means a lot to me…"

Rogue smiled. "And besides…Logan finally feels better again too and…"

"What do you mean?", Jean asked surprised.

Marie was confused. "Well…he…he was a complete mess after you died…."

The older woman moved around so that she could look at her directly. "Tell me, please! I'd already noticed that he wasn't as strong as he used to be a few weeks ago… And besides,...he never tells me anything about what had happened afterwards… So I pretty much don't know anything…"

Her opposite sighed. "Well, he didn't tell you anything, because he can't…"

Now Jean felt completely confused. Why couldn't Logan tell her anything? Had he left during her absence? "Please,…tell me, Rogue…"

"Okay", the girl said finally, thinking about where to start. "But I can only tell you what the others have told me. I wasn't here the whole time through…"

"No problem…"

Rogue began to tell Jean about what had happened after Logan had to kill her. How aggressive he had became against nearly everything and everyone, that no one of them was able to reach him; that he completely separated from them and didn't even care about his own health. She finally ended at the point where Jean had returned. "He's the complete opposite from before… He's pretty much the same again, except when it comes to Storm…"

Jean passed her hand over her brow and starred down in complete disbelief, while her heart was racing in her chest. She sat there in silence, thinking about what Rogue had just told her. "What happened between them?"

Rogue shrugged. "I think Logan dislikes the way she's treating you. He can't understand that she let's you down like that… I remember that Kitty told me about a conversation she overheard between the two of them after the funeral of the Professor…" She stopped for a brief moment and closed her eyes, trying to remember everything. "She caught him in his room while he was packing a few things in a bag. Storm asked him where he wanted to go to and got angry at him after she figured it out. She couldn't understand why Logan refused to let you go and told him that you had already chosen your side and demanded from him that he chose his side. She wanted him to decide whether his loyalties were with you or with them. Storm didn't even understand him after she figured out that he l…" Rogue stopped. She didn't know if Jean knew about Logan's feelings towards her. She remembered that she'd felt a stitch after Kitty had told her about the confrontation, even if she had already known it. Bobby had told her long ago about how Logan felt, even if the older mutant had tried to hide it back then.

"…loves me…", Jean finished her sentence.

Surprised Rogue looked up. "You know it?"

Jean nodded. "He had told me before…before he'd hilled me…" Again she looked down. Her emotions were running wild. She'd never thought or believed that the incidents could have gotten him so of course… It hurt her to hear how much he had suffered because if her. Again it was her fault… "Thanks for telling me…"

Rogue nodded smiling. "I envy you, you know…", she said after a while.

"Why?", Jean asked surprised.

"Because…you're lucky to have him on your side… I've never met anyone who's as loyal as him… If he had to, he would fight against anyone here to protect you."

Jean blushed for a moment and looked down to her hands. "He'd do the same for you… He cares a lot for you…"

Rogue smiled. "Yeah, I know, but not as much as for you. I'm only his little sister…"

"Still having a crush on him, huh?" Jean teased her smiling.

The girl laughed. "But I'm fine with Bobby, so you can have him!", she winked jokingly.

Suddenly, the door opened and Logan stepped in. "Oh...you've got company. Hi, Rogue!", he greeted the younger woman.

"Marie!", she corrected him.

"Marie…", he said, emphasizing it jokingly. He made eye contact with Jean and frowned as she broke it immediately. "You're waiting for me?"

Rogue nodded and got up. "Peter asked if you could show Bobby and him how to repair this motor again."

"Yeah, sure", Logan said with his hands in his jeans pockets. "When?"

"After dinner?"

"'Kay… I'll be there."

"Good!", Marie smiled, heading towards the door. Before she left, she turned around again. "Bye, Jean!"

"Bye." Jean watched her leave. Directly after the door was closed, she felt her heart starting to beat triple rhythms again, as it had done after Logan had stepped into the room.

"What's wrong?"

She jumped, gasping for air as his voice sounded directly next to her. "Jesus….Logan…", she hissed after she realized that he had sat down next to her.

"Daydreaming, huh?", he stated, still looking at her.

She didn't answer and walked towards the window. Logan frowned. He noticed that something was different, but he couldn't remember that he had done anything wrong in the past hours. He could sense her nervousness and inner turmoil. It couldn't still be because of her being alone with Rogue… But why should she be feeling like that because of him…?

Slowly he stood up and stopped directly behind her. Cautiously he laid a hand on her shoulder. "Jeannie,…what's wrong?"

Very sudden, she turned around, crying and clutching him desperately. Logan was taken by surprised, unable to react immediately.

"I'm so sorry, Logan…"

"About what?", he asked confused, letting her cry on his shoulder.

"I didn't mean to hurt you so much… It was wrong to ask it from you…" Her sobs even became harder.

Logan frowned, not having the foggiest idea. "Jean, I don't understand anything…what the hell are you talking about?" He waited and was afraid she would choke because of her sobs. As Logan realized she wouldn't stop so soon, he lifted her up and sat down on the bed so that she was sitting astride on his lap.

Jean had put her arms around his neck and hid her face there. Logan sighed and put his arms around her, stroking her back and letting her cry.

After a while she calmed down and he could only hear few sobs following from time to time. "What did you mean?", he tried it again, whispering it since he didn't want to fright her again.

"Why didn't you tell me?", she asked barely audible.

"What?"

"About what happened afterwards…" She sat up, looking into his eyes, but still with her hands behind his neck.

Logan sighed, breaking eye contact. "Rogue told you, didn't she?"

She nodded slowly. "Logan, why didn't you tell me…? Why didn't you tell me how hard it was for you…?"

"Does it matter?", he asked harshly, his eyes fixed on her again and telling her that he didn't want to go any further.

"Yes, it does! It matters to me, Logan!", she gave back, but fall silent again. "I'm sorry… Really… I shouldn't have asked you to do it…"

"Jean, you knew that I was the only one who could do it…" He paused for a moment. "I'd only wished that I could have saved you somehow..", he added calmly.

Jean gently laid a hand on his check, causing him to look up. She felt her heart beating in every inch of her body. She couldn't tell him how much she thanked him, how much he meant to her, but still it ached her to know how he had to pay for being loyal to her. It wasn't her intention…she'd known that he had feelings for her, that he was as attracted to her as she was to him from the very first moment they'd met. But still she'd never known, until shortly before she had to die, that he felt more for her than attraction or pure lust and it had nearly destroyed her to see his pain back then… Jean realized that she'd been staring into his eyes, but even if she wanted, she couldn't look away. Her heart was still pounding strongly in her chest, causing her to breathe faster.

Jean felt an inner urge rising within her, which told her to give in. She felt her emotions running wild again, but she wasn't afraid of her alter ego,…not now…

Suddenly, she bent forward, pressed her lips to his and grabbed his neck to pull him even closer to her. Logan was surprised by her action, was unable to react first, but as soon as he felt her lips on his, he closed his eyes and gave her free reign. He let himself fall backwards, taking her with him and immediately start thinking about the deja-vu he just had. Back in the woods it had been the same with Mystique… The same situation, the same position...the way she kissed him and sot on him…The only difference was that this time it was for real…

Hungrily he kissed her back, feeling and exploring her body with his hands, while he allowed her to slip her tongue into his mouth. Jean mourned softly when she felt his hands slipping under her shirt, while she ran her hands down his chest. When she reached his jeans, Logan suddenly broke off.

"What?", she asked puzzled. Jean saw that he seemed to search something in her eyes. "Logan, what is it?"

He waved off. "Just wanted to make sure that it is really you this time…", Logan said kissing her gently.

"Of course it's me…"

"I know. Sorry… He became serious and stroke back a strand which had fallen into her face. "You sure about this?", he asked cautiously. "We don't have to rush things…"

She just nodded. "I wouldn't be doing this otherwise…"

He shrugged playfully. "'Kay…that's an argument." Quickly, he rolled over so that he was on top now, pressing his hip against hers. With one last look into her eyes he began to kiss her passionately again…


	9. Chapter 8

_So, here's the 8th chapter. Hope you enjoy it as well. I have written up to Chapter 14 now, but I still have to type them up. So, it will take quiet some time. Well, have fun reading and please review! You can also state wishes and tell me what you would like to read or what you don't like! ;)_

**Changes Chapter 8**

Logan awoke by someone knocking at the door. He grunted and began to move slowly. As he opened his eyes he felt Jean's body laying close to his, a hand resting on his chest. As it knocked again he raised an eyebrow and rolled his eyes. Why couldn't this moment just last forever, he though and got up slowly, trying not to wake her. He picked up his jeans from the ground and put it on, not carrying that his upper body was naked. He ran a hand through his hair which was sticking up and opened the door, just to find Bobby, Kitty, Rogue and Peter standing in front of it.

Bobby immediately smirked and gave Rogue and Kitty, who also grinned, a knowing look.

"What is it?", Logan asked with his husky voice looking annoyed.

Peter shrugged. "Well, we were waiting for you downstairs…"

His opposite started to think as it finally hit him. "Yeah, sorry…I uhm…I fell asleep…", he excused while running a hand through his hair again.

"Hmh…", Bobby smirked. "You fell asleep… Doesn't happen to you normally, huh?", he teased him, but Logan only gave him a warning look.

"I'll be right there. Hold on a second!" He closed the door again and picked up his shirt from the ground. He left Jean a note on his pillow and gave her a quick kiss before he left the room again.

When Logan came back an hour later, he saw that Jean was still sleeping. Therefore, he cautiously closed the door, walked over to his bed and got rid of his clothes again. Slowly he laid down beside her and turned around so that he could look at her face, which was lightened up by the moonlight. He rested his head in his hands, while the other stroked a strand out of her face. He had always known that she was beautiful, but right now she appeared even more gorgeous to him. He wasn't regretting it, how could he? For the first time in his life, Logan felt complete and really happy. Nevertheless, he wondered of she felt different about it… He knew that she cared a lot for him, but could she also love him…?

She turned around, facing him now and causing the blanket to expose more of her skin. Logan smiled slightly. He would protect and help her, no matter what. His looks became serious as he thought about the meeting with the Professor. Logan wondered, if the others would ever be able to accept and forgive her. Whatever, he thought, he had made his decision and no one would stop him, except her. She was the most important thing in his life…no matter what it might cost him, he would be standing at her side…

"You're back?", she asked sleepy and looked at him with small eyes.

"Did I wake you?"

She shook her head and stroked with her right hand through her face. "No,…I woke up shortly after you must have left. But it seems that I've fallen asleep again."

He smiled softly.

"So, how was your extra lesson? I suppose they missed you downstairs…"

Logan shrugged. "Nothing special. I only hope they keep everything in mind…"

Jean smiled. "Better don't be too optimistic!", she warned him. "Students only keep those things in mind that they want to remember. And in their age it's never schools stuff…"

"Well, in mine neither…", he teased her smirking.

She raised an eyebrow playfully. "You don't even know how old you are, Logan!"

"This round is yours…", he admitted.

For a few minutes neither of them said anything, until Logan looked at her completely serious. "Do you regret it?", he asked barely audible while his heart was beating strongly.

"Why should I, Logan?", she asked while shaking her head. "We both knew from the beginning that it would happen sooner or later…"

"Did we?", he asked surprised that she had felt the same way.

She shrugged. "You once allowed me to read your mind, remember? And sometimes you're sending pretty directly", she smirked.

"Ouch…" Logan ran his hand trough his hair.

"So, no…I'm not regretting it… Do you?", she asked carefully.

"Are you kidding?", he asked in return.

Jean smiled at him and he pulled her close, pressing a gentle kiss on her lips. With a quick movement she was sitting on top pf him, kissing him back.

"You're insatiable, you know that?", Logan mumbled between two kisses.

"Thanks to you", she gave back while she put his hands to her hips…

"Morning", Rogue greeted as Kitty and Jubilee entered the kitchen.

"Morning", they answered and sat down on a chair next to her.

While they ate breakfast and talked mostly about girls stuff, Bobby and Peter came inside, joining them.

"Can't believe they're still outside practicing", Peter said and drank a bit of the hot chocolate in his cup. "I mean, it's freezing cold outside today…"

"They are already outside?", Kitty asked surprised and put down her bread.

Rogue nodded. "They always start early so that they are finished till breakfast. At least that's what I guess…"

"Well, at night they're practicing something else."

"Jubes!", Bobby said looking at the girl in front of him.

"Ah, come on! Don't tell me you haven't noticed it!", the girl said grinning,

"Noticed what?", Kitty asked as Logan and Jean came in.

"Morning", both said and sat down on the chairs at the end of the table. When Logan wanted to hand over the bread basket to Jean, their hands touched for a glimpse of a second, making both of them smile for a short moment.

"See?", Jubilee whispered towards the others.

"Are you spying on them?", Bobby asked smirking.

"No, but let's say I know someone who's room is next to Logan's", she grinned causing Bobby to shake his head with an even wider grin than hers.

"Well, at least both are feeling better…", Rogue said watching the two grown ups talking and flirting with each other. She felt a deep happiness becoming stronger within her. Not only that she saw Logan smile nearly every time she met him somewhere, even Jean was feeling better after nearly 8 months since her return. Rogue also felt relieved that both of them had finally come together. She had always known about their attraction for each other. Rogue turned around as she heard someone coming closer. Storm entered the kitchen and greeted the students before she took notice of the two grown ups. She slowly walked over to the last empty chair, which unfortunately was next to Jean.

"Great!", Logan snorted and put down his glass.

"What?", Jean asked frowning as he got up.

"The Professor wants to see me", Logan explained, glancing fleetingly at Storm. "Are you fine here without me?"

"Yeah…", she nodded.

"'Kay, I'll se you later." He gave her a quick kiss before he left the room.

Jean felt her heart beating in every inch of her body. She tried to stay calm and concentrated in her breakfast, completely aware of Ororo looking at her.

"You know what I don't understand?", she heard her asking.

"What?"

"How can you have an affair with Logan so shortly after what happened to Scott?", Storm asked coldly.

Jean winced and let her breakfast sank down.

"I mean…", Storm went on. "…either you never loved Scott or you do not love Logan, but you can't tell me that you can love someone so shortly after your last partner died."

The students started as Jean slammed the door shut behind her in anger.

"Great work, Storm, Jubilee said angrily.

"Why can't you just leave her alone?", Kitty asked coldly.

Storm noticed the accusing and angry looks of the students as the door opened again and the Professor entered. "Can someone please explain to me what just happened?", he asked calmly while looking from one student to the next,

"Ask her!", Bobby answered nodding towards Storm.

"How did you know?", Rogue asked surprised.

"Well, let's say I was in the middle of a conversation with Wolverine, as he suddenly turned his head around because he heard something and then he ran off", he explained looking at Storm, who immediately felt bad.

"I'm sorry, it just came over me…", she admitted calmly.

"In stead of attacking her you should be proud of her progress, thanks to Logan."

"Progress?", she asked confused.

"Well, she was pretty pissed off at you but didn't transformed into Phoenix, did she?", Bobby explained ironically.

"Otherwise, you'd be a big pile of dust now", Jubilee added smirking. Storm only gave her a warning look.

"Please, Ororo…the last months have been very quiet…so don't cause a change now!", the Professor warned her. "You're behaving like a jealous child."

"Sorry…" She looked down.

"Where are they now?", Rogue asked and looked at the Professor who concentrated for a few seconds.

"Outside in the garden", he answered.

Logan had found her standing in front of Scott's grave. As he watched her, the memories of their first visit 5 months ago immediately came back to him. It had been the first time for weeks that she'd collapsed and cried as if there was no tomorrow for her. He had let her cry and supported her until she'd calmed down after what had appeared to him like hours.

Now she was just standing there and looking down at the grave stone, as it seemed not being aware of his presence. Logan waited a few more minutes before he came closer until he finally stood at her side. He gave the stone a short glance before he looked at her, noticing the dried tears on her cheeks and her empty eyes. "What did she say, Jean?", he asked calmly, watching her eyes switching to him.

"Nothing…"

He sighed frustrated and put his hands to his hips. "Either you tell me or I'll ask Rogue and the others…"

Jean turned around and started to walk to the pond, followed by him. She sat down on the edge and touched the water with one hand, avoiding his look on purpose. "Well, what do you think she said?", she asked embittered. "She blamed me for being with you…"

"What!", Logan asked in disbelief and sat down next to her. His eyes were fixed on her face, watching her mimic closely. "Is she completely nuts now?"

Jean shrugged and sighed. "She thinks that I am only using you, I think…that I am betraying Scott by being with you…"

"That's bullshit, Jean!", Logan said loudly, still trying to hide his anger. "You don't believe this crap, do you?"

"No…", Jean said calmly, but still looking at him with sad eyes. "It just hurts…"

He took her hand into his. "What did I taught you a week ago, Jeannie?", he asked with a half smile.

She smirked vaguely. "Don't care about what others might think about you", Jean repeated one of his lessons with more friendly word than he had used. "I know, Logan, but it's not so easy…"

"I know", he said. "But you're doing fine, Jean. She's not a pile of dust now, is she?"

"No, I only managed to damage the door", she gave back smirking slightly as he chuckled.

"See? That's my girl!"

Jean became serious again. "But I guess I can't stop you from talking to her, right?"

Logan got up and gave her a quick kiss. "Nope. That's the next thing on my list for today."

She nodded and got up too, walking back with him. "No other plans for today then?", she asked while stopping at their room door.

Logan checked the corridor before he pushed her gently against the door, pressing his body against hers.

"Logan!", she shrieked as he began to kiss her neck passionately.

"Well, I could think about some more things for today…", he whispered in hi husky voice which always made her heart beat faster.

"You already added them to your list, I suppose?", she asked flirting with him.

He pulled her hip closer to his. "Uhu…", he smirked, looking at her with this special gleam in his eyes, which she had gotten to know very well in the past months.

"It gets easier when you open the door, ya know", they suddenly heard someone saying.

Logan rolled his eyes while he let go of Jean who blushed. "Thanks for the advice, Jubes", he grunted.

"You're welcome!", the girl grinned at them and disappeared into her room again.

He waited until the door was closed before he turned to Jean again. "So, I'll be right back."

Jean nodded and watched him leave. "But, Logan?"

He stopped and looked at her.

"Don't be too harsh…", she said.

"I'll try", he gave back jokingly before he continued to walk down the corridor again.

"I hope so…", Jean said calmly and opened the door.

Storm walked towards the door as she heard a knock. She opened it and immediately looked into Logan's cold and angry eyes.

"Get inside", he hissed calmly.

She stepped backwards and watched him closing the door.

"Sit down!"

She obeyed, knowing that he was on the edge of his patience. "Logan, look I…"

"Shut up, 'Ro!", he hissed and put his hands to his hips. He looked at her for a few minutes, before he had calmed himself just as much to ask a question without yelling at her. "Do your really hate Jean so much, Storm?"

Ororo looked down. She had thought about the things she had said at the morning, but hadn't found an answer why she had said them.

"I asked you something!", Logan said raising his voice.

"I don't know…", she finally answered. "It just happened, Logan…"

"It just happened?", he asked sarcastically and folded his arms. "Well, happens quiet a lot to you lately, doesn't it?"

Storm sighed. "Whatever…"

"Just tell me how I should train her if you always come around and destroy the results we achieved, damn it! How, Storm?", he asked feeling that his control was lacking by even looking at the woman in front of him. "You wanted her to learn control again, but you keep on pushing her around and guess what? I think I figured out why…"

Storm felt her blood starting to boil and returned the angry look he gave her.

"You don't want her to learn it, right?", he asked with a knowing undertone. "You don't it because you can't stand seeing her happy, isn't that so?"

She looked down on her hands, feeling her heart beating strongly of anger.

"You can't stand it, because you still hate her for the things she'd done. For the problems you had to solve after the death of Scott and the Professor, the stress and work you had because of it… And now you want to make her pay for it, right? Tell me if I'm wrong!"

Storm jumped up, facing him with tears of anger in her eyes. "You weren't much of help, Logan! You don't know what I've been through back then!", she yelled at him and the tears began to run down her cheeks. "You neither know what I've been through or how I felt back then, nor about the sacrifices I had to made, because it was ME who had to take care of things without having anyone to help me or to talk to!"

"Well, you never asked anyone for help, did you?", he shot back.

She folded her arms in front of her chest and her eyes darkened. "Who should I have come to? To you?", she asked bitterly. "You were a mess, Logan. Everyone thought you would kill yourself because you couldn't deal with Jean's death! So, I couldn't have come to you, could I?"

He looked down for a short moment, ignoring the stab he felt. "Still it's not giving you the right to treat Jean like shit. She's suffering enough already and doesn't need you to open old wounds."

"I'm sorry for what I said, damn it!", Storm shot back. "I know it was stupid and wrong, but I can't take it back anymore, can I?"

Logan looked at her threatening. "Well, I hope for you that it won't happen again…" He ignored the look she gave him and turned around. With his hand on the door knob he stopped. "And besides…", he began while opening the door. "I can't kill myself, remember?" With that he was gone.

When he returned to his room he found Jean standing with her back to him at the drawer. Apparently, she just had gotten out of the shower, since she was wearing the same underwear she had worn down in the lab, after they had found her at Alkali Lake. Logan silently sneaked behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling Jean against his body.

"Already back?", she asked surprised and gasped for air as his lips began to caress her neck.

"Uhum…", he grunted and licked at her neck now.

Jean closed her eyes and leant back against him, pulling her head aside to give him more access. As he reached a sensitive spot she bit her lip, breathing in sharply. She felt his hands wandering under her tank top, stroking her already heated skin and pulling her even closer against his body. Jean began to breathe even harder as he ran his fingers hardly noticeable over her breasts. Quickly, she turned around, grabbed his neck and pulled him closer, kissing him passionately. Logan pushed her against the wall, pressed his hip against hers by pulling up her leg, which immediately caused her to sigh into his mouth. She on the contrary enjoyed the feelings only he could trigger off within her and pulled down his grey tank. Both of them had to breathe hard as they broke the kiss to fill their lungs with new air again. Jean looked into Logan's eyes, saw the lust in them, saw how much he wanted her… She leaned forward and now it was her who nibbled on his neck while she worked on his jeans at the same time. Logan pulled her up just to push her against the wall at the same time. With his hands on her hips he kissed her passionately, but also hard and wanting, before he carried her towards the bed.


	10. Chapter 9

_When I started this, I never thought or even imagined that I would write so much. : ) I can't believe that this is Chapter 9 already. I know this chapter is pretty short, but the previous and the next one are longer. Hope you still like Changes. ; )_

_Please review!_

**Changes Chapter 9**

The sheets laid on the ground, careless thrown to the ground and creased together. The heat in the room was causing perspiration and the complete opposite to the cool air on the outside. Both mutants laid with their arms tightly around one another and were deeply asleep. Their bodies were covered with the sweat of their love making from before. Jean rested her head on his shoulder, the arms tightly wrapped around his waist while one leg was resting on his hip. Logan moved and stretched his legs a bit and pressed his head even deeper into her hair.

"Somebody help!"

Logan and Jean immediately woke up as they heard the loud, bloodcurdling scream. She felt her heart beating strongly in her chest, thought that it would break any minute. Frightened she looked into Logan's eyes who was as confused and shaken up as she was. "Who was that?"

"I dunno…"

"Help!"

Immediately he jumped out of bed and put his jeans on. "Rogue…", was all he said as he jumped over the bed towards the door. Jean instinctively grabbed one of Logan's shirts, which was luckily long enough to cover her body and followed him down the corridor.

Many students were already standing in front of Rogue's room and were watching the scenery within with shocked eyes. Logan fought his way through them, pulling Jean with him.

"Oh my God", Jean gasped and immediately she kneeled down beside Bobby who laid with eyes wide open and violently shaking on the ground. Logan looked at Rogue who sat crying and with frightened eyes which were fixed on Bobby in a corner of the room, her arms pulling her legs closer to her body.

"Give me the pillow, Logan!", Jean demanded and hold out a hand to him. He reached it over to her, kneeling down at her site, his mind was racing.

"What happened?", Storm asked gasping for air and coming closer.

Jean looked up, noticing that also the Professor had arrived. "I need a bag or something like that from the kitchen. He's hyperventilating!" Storm nodded and ran off. "Kitty?", Jean called looking for the girl in the crowd.

"Yeah?" The girl stepped into the room, her eyes fixed on her friend on the ground.

Jean's eyes had found a pen and a piece of paper on which she quickly wrote something before she handed it towards the girl. "Get me that from the lab. It's in the second drawer on the left side. You'll find needles and syringes in the board next to it."

The girl nodded and disappeared into the ground.

"You fine here without me?", Logan asked nodding towards Bobby who was still shaking and gasping for air.

Jean nodded and kneeled down again, checking on the boy's pulse.

Logan got up and walked towards Rogue who was still crying desperately.

"No! Stay away from me!", she yelled hysterically as he reached out to touch her.

"Rogue…", he kneeled down and tried again which only made her more hysterical.

"I said stay away!", she screamed and backed off quickly.

Logan looked around. Finally he pulled a blanket from the bed and tried to wrap it around the girl who fought violently against him. Her hysterical screams shrilled inside of his ears and caused his head to ache. After he finally managed to take hold of her, he pulled her into his arms and tried to calm her, paying attention not to touch her bare skin.

"I didn't want that to happen…I only touched him…", she cried loudly.

The Professor came closer, his eyes switching from the girl to Jean. "Will he be alright?", he asked worried.

Jean briefly looked up. " I think so. He's in the same state of shock as Logan had been back then."

"Here's a bag", Storm said, arriving together with Kitty.

"And here's the stuff from the lab."

"Thanks!", Jean said taking the syringe and the rest out of Kitty's hands. "'Ro, I need you to pull the bag over his mouth."

Storm did as she was told. "For how long?"

"I'll let you know", answered Jean and injected Bobby the medicine into his veins, checking his pulse afterwards again.

Logan watched the whole scenery, still holding Rogue tight. "I didn't want this to happen, Logan. I really didn't…" she sobbed heavily.

"I know, Rogue. It's not your fault. Blame those damn scientists for it!"

"Okay, that's enough!", Jean said and Ororo pulled the bag away. She checked his pulse again before she nodded towards Peter. "He's sleeping now. Could you carry him back to his room?"

"Ororo and I will watch over him", the Professor said. "Good work, Jean…" He added a proud smile to it. "And you go back to sleep!", he said towards the other students.

Jean watched them leave, before she turned towards Logan. "How is she?"

"I think she's sleeping now", he answered, lifting the girl up and laying her down on the bed. He tucked her in and folded his arms. "Damn scientist…", he cursed.

Jean put a hand on his arms. "We should let her sleep, now."

Logan nodded. "I'll get our stuff", he said and disappeared, while Jean pulled an armchair closer towards the bed. When he returned he carried a pillow and a blanket with him. After he had sat down, he held something else out towards Jean. "You might want to put these on first before you sit down", Logan smirked.

She blushed as she recognized her pants and quickly put them on. He held out an arm and waited until she had settled down on his lap, before he put the blanket around them.

"Do you think she'll be fine?", Jean asked resting her head on his shoulder, while her eyes were fixed on Rogue.

"Yeah…", he said. "We should worry about something else…"

Jean frowned. "About what?"

"If she got her powers back, Magneto got them back too", he explained grimly. "And he'll be pretty pissed off, especially when it comes to us…"

She began to remember as the pictures from Alcatraz returned to her. "He had called you traitors to your own kind…"

Logan nodded while he watched Rogue turn around in her sleep, seeing a single tear running down her check. "And he will be pissed off at me too, because it was my plan to give him the cure."

Jean faced him. "You can't fight against him… you're powerless against Magneto…"

"I know."

She felt her heart racing inside her chest and clung closer to him. What if Magneto was already gathering his old troops and made plans to attack them? What if he found out that she was alive? She didn't feel ready for a real battle… Logan had worked with her on blocking her mind against other thoughts so far, but not on controlling her powers during a fight… What if she had to fight and her emotions went wild? It would be the certain end of the X-Men…

Logan had sensed the change within her and wrapped his arms around her. "It's the first thing we'll work on after breakfast, Jean. And I'm pretty sure that Chuck is already taking care of things, too…" He kissed her neck quickly before pulling her closer towards him.


	11. Chapter 10

**Changes Chapter 10**

Logan led Jean down the small path until they reached the spot where he usually trained his abilities. Jean looked around and frowned. She couldn't see anything she could train her powers with. "What are we doing here, Logan?", she asked puzzled. "I thought you wanted top help me with my control?"

He turned around smirking and threw one bottle with water towards her which he had taken out of the basket he'd been carrying the whole time through. "Did you ever do Martial Arts?", he asked her in return and watched amused as her chin dropped.

"We must consider all possibilities", said the Professor and watched Logan and Jean on the outside. "I'm sure Erik knew earlier about the cure so he is ahead of us. I already tried to locate him and members of the Brotherhood with Cerebro, but it will take some time before we get results."

Storm nodded. "If he plans to attack us here, then we have to be prepared… All students, except the X-Men, are either too young to fight or not trained for it… And it's impossible to teach them to fight or defend in such a short time. Especially since we do not know if or when he plans an attack on us…"

"Speaking of fighting…", Hank said and came closer to the window. "What are they doing out there?", he asked and watched the to mutants in the garden curiously.

"He's teaching her to control Phoenix", the Professor answered.

Hank raised an eyebrow. "By doing Tai Chi with her!"

Charles smiled. "Trust me, Hank", he said looking up and exchanged glances with him. "Logan knows how to cage a beast and she already made a lot of progress because of him."

"Yeah, it only makes a difference that his beast is not as powerful as hers…"

"She is doing fine, Hank", Ororo added and stopped beside him. "I only wonder what might happen if Magneto figures out that she's alive… Logan can't protect her against if necessary…"

Hank, who had looked at her while she spoke, switched his look towards the event in the garden again.

"The only problem is", said the Professor watching Logan talking to Jean and seeing her shaking her head violently, "… that he has to rush his lessons because of the incident at night and that Jean might not be ready for it…" His eyes saw Logan grabbing her arms and keeping on on her. He noticed and could almost feel Jean's fear, but he knew that they needed her to control her powers in case of an attack. It scared him to imagine that the Phoenix could rise during a battle…it would doom all of them to die possibly…

"Logan, please…", Jean pleaded and looked at him frightened. "I can't…"

"Jean, you can, trust me…", he answered. "You need to practice it and we have to rush through it, I'm sorry…"

She shook her head and looked down, feeling how the fear ate her up inside. He took her face into his hands and made her look at him in that way. "We've practiced it, Jean. You can do it if you remember what we did in the last months. I know you can!", Logan went on. "Hell, I can't protect you if this bastard attacks us, so I have to be sure that you can take care of yourself…"

Jean breathed hard and was shaking all over. "What if I hurt you?"

"You won't!"

"What if I lose it?"

"Then I'm here to help you out", he assured her.

She swallowed and thought about it for a brief moment. Finally, she sighed. "Okay,…what do you want me to do?"

Logan smiled at her and squeezed her hand confidently. "We'll do this in three rounds first." He took a bottle into his hands. "Try to stop it with your mind. Concentrate and remember the things we've practiced, okay?"

Jean nodded slowly and watched him taking position a few meters away from her. Her heart was beating violently fast; she even felt her hands shaking. Desperately she tried to recall what he had taught her in the past months.

"You ready?", he asked.

She took one last deep breath and nodded finally.

"Okay. Here comes the first."

Jean watched the bottle flying towards her and instinctively jumped aside. She couldn't concentrate. The only thing she felt was her heartbeat and the immense fear within her.

"Forget it! Next one. Concentrate!", Logan demanded and threw another bottle at her.

Again she backed away, breathing heavily.

"Remember it, Jean! You can do it!"

Jean closed her eyes and took deep breaths to calm herself. Her mind was racing, searching for a solution. She recalled one lesson after the next, heard what he had taught her, saw what she had learned from him. She recalled day after day, week after week, month after month…

"Next one!", Jean heard him say from far away. She followed the sound the bottle made after he had let go of it, traced its way towards her and finally opened her eyes as she felt it being close by. Jean kept her eyes fixed on it and raised her hand slowly, ordering the object to stop. She didn't saw Logan's surprised face as her eyes began to glow orange for a brief moment. She only had eyes for the bottle which floated directly in front of her. Jean shook her head and blinked, causing the bottle to drop to the ground. Confused she starred at it…

Suddenly, Logan pulled her into his arms. "You did it!", he said, holding her face in his hands. "Jeannie, you did it! You made it stop!"

Once again she looked down to the object, before she met his gaze smiling. She embraced him closely, hiding her face in his neck and started to sob.

"Hey, no need to cry about it!", he teased her and pulled her closer.

"She did it!", Storm said surprised and looked down to the Professor who smiled proudly. "She really stopped it

"The boy made it…I can't believe it…", Hank murmured amazed and shook his head.

"Don't rash! It's too early to conclude something from it!", Charles warned. Still, he felt pride within him.

"Ready for round two?", Logan asked after a while and stroke a strand out of her face.

Jean nodded and took her position again. "Okay, two at once this time", Logan said.

They kept on training her powers for two more hours. Raising the amount of bottles after she was successful or reducing it if she couldn't stop them. After they had emptied the basket twice, Logan stopped, nearly as heavily breathing as Jean was. "Okay, let's make a break", he said handing a bottle to Jean before he sat down and leant against a tree.

She sat down between his legs, resting her body against his. Both just sat there in silence and drank water while they calmed themselves down.

"Thanks, Logan!", Jean finally said and looked up at him.

"You're welcome, Red!", he winked smiling.

"So, what's round three?", she asked after a while.

"Experiments on the living object", he answered while putting away his empty bottle.

Jean raised an eyebrow and slowly turned around, looking at him in disbelief. "You want me to fight against you!"

"No fighting, Jean. Not yet."

"What do you have in mind, then?", she asked confused and still frowning.

He got up and helped her to her feet. "The same as before, just that I'm the bottle this time."

Jean folded her arms. "And how do you want to do that?", she asked. "Did you plan to jump off the roof?"

Logan chuckled. "Something like that."

She followed his look and saw Collossus approaching. Then it hit her… "You're kidding, Logan!"

"Nope!"

"Logan, if I don't catch you…", Jean started and felt her fear improving immediately.

"There it is again!", he said looking at her.

"What?"

"This insecurity", Logan answered. "I told you, Jean that you have to believe in yourself. I trust you, otherwise I wouldn't be doing that."

Jean watched Collossus stepping behind him. "Logan…", she tried to protest again, but he only shook his head.

"No, Jean! No but's, can'ts, don'ts or won'ts anymore. You're gonna do this now!"

She sighed and looked around in despair. She felt caught in a nightmare. Either her heart would stop beating or breaking her chest. "I just don't want you to get hurt…", she admitted, her heartbeat completely out of control now.

"See?", he said. "_Don't_!"

Jean knew that he wouldn't change his mind and let her leave without at least trying it. But still she was scared to death… If she couldn't catch him he could be seriously wounded or even killed. And then it was her fault again. She would be blamed for it. Jean shook her head, looking at him, tears gathering in her eyes. She saw the intransient look he gave her. Finally, she sighed again.

"Good!", Logan nodded and gave Collossus a sign. "Ready?"

Jean took a very deep breath and nodded slowly, knowing deep in her heart that this would end badly…

Hank frowned and put down the cup he was holding in his hands. "What is he doing now?"

Also the Professor frowned. He hadn't dared to read their minds, wanted them to keep their privacy, but still he couldn't figure out what Logan's intention was.

The door opened behind them and Storm came back, holding a tray in her hand with new tea. "Did they finish their break?", she asked while putting it down on the large desk of the Professor. When she didn't get an answer, she stepped forward and looked out of the window. Immediately her eyes widened. "Oh my God. He's not doing this, is he?"

"Okay, jus do it as I told you", Logan said to Collossus, before he gave Jean a last look. He noticed how terrified she was, yet he knew it was necessary. He could smell her fear. "You can do it, Jean! I trust you completely!" Logan felt Colossuss grabbing his collar with one hand and his belt with the other, fixing his eyes on Jean. He was glad that she hadn't had his heightened senses. His heart was racing and he, too, was scared to death. He swallowed. "Okay, go!"

With all his might, Collossus threw Logan straight up into the air, stepping aside and watching his friend rising higher and higher afterwards.

Jean was standing stock still with her eyes fixed on heaven. If her heart had been beating fast before, it just stopped working now. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't focus. Too great was her fear that she would fail, that he would fall down to earth and smash. She noticed that she had stopped breathing and finally she could feel her heart racing again. Her body was shaking heavily. She tried to raise her hand, but her arm wasn't moving. Jean breathed heavily, thought she would choke because she was so close to hyperventilating…

Logan on the contrary had his eyes still fixed on her, even as he reached the highest point. It appeared to him that he stopped in the air for a few seconds, before gravity pulled him back with all its might.

Jean watched him falling. She couldn't make it. He would crash down to the ground and even his healing factor couldn't fix the damage again… She took one step forward, her eyes fixed on him, while her heart and breath were totally out of control. Still, he was falling.

Collossus kept on switching between Logan and Jean. He had trusted him that she would make it. It had cost Logan much to convince him to do it, but now he had his doubts. "Mrs. Grey…?", he asked worriedly and frightened, looking up again to see his friend gaining speed. Time was running out…

Logan watched the ground coming closer and closer. His fear had taken over now, but still his faith in her was the dominant part within him. "Come on, Jean!", he said out loud. "Come on…" He could almost see the green in her eyes, so close was he already. If he was wrong, he'd inevitably passed the death sentence on himself…, no he wasn't, she would make it… Again he fixed his eyes on hers, watching the ground coming closer…

"Stop…", Jean whispered while she looked up. "Stop…" It wasn't working, she couldn't stop him… "Please stop!", she said louder as tears began to flow down her cheeks. Her breath was coming irregularly now, causing her mind to race even more. He only had few meters left before he would hit the ground… Why wasn't it working? It had worked before, why not now? Desperately, she raised one hand as she did before and focused, but still he was falling… She had only second left… Jean could hear the Phoenix within her…laughing at her incompetence. She sank to her knees and wrapped her arms around her. It was happening again…she would kill one of her closest friends again, she would be held responsible for it, because she was too weak… He had already reached the height of the roof as she looked up again…she had no time left…

Logan had stopped fighting against keeping himself calm. His breath and heartbeat were already out of control and his claws had popped out, as he could see the Professor, Hank and Storm approaching in the garden. He saw Jean falling down to her knees…, she gave up… "No!", he said and his eyes widened. It couldn't be, he couldn't have been wrong…his instincts had never forsaken him… Helplessly, Logan watched the roof going past him. Instinctively, he covered his face with his arms…

Jean heard him inside of her mind, heard his screams that he wanted her to get up again. She closed her eyes, causing more tears to flow. In her mind, she saw him crashing down to earth over and over again, heard the Phoenix laughing even louder. She hadn't had to open her eyes to know that it was over soon. She could almost hear the wind biting at him. Why hadn't he listened to her…?

"Jean!", he yelled at her as he reached the 10-metre mark. "Damn it, get up!"

She covered her ears, didn't want to hear the sound of inevitability, which wasn't far away anymore.

"_You should have stayed dead!"_, Phoenix laughed. _"Now, you'll lose him, too. Poor little girl…"_

"Shut up!", Jean said, her voice trembling.

"_You're too weak!"_, Phoenix hissed in her mind. _"A caged animal that was tamed, now look where it lead you to… Open your eyes and watch how I'll make you pay for fighting me…you and him!"_

"Shut up!", she tried again and grimaced with pain. Her head felt as if it would explode any minute. She couldn't bear it anymore…

"Jean!"

Jean shook her head in pain again. There were too many voices…

"_They'll hate you if he dies…they'll make you pay for it! You're not welcome here anymore, poor little girl. It's not your home, Jean! It's the golden cage they want you to be kept in!"_

"Shut your mouth!", Jean hissed loudly.

"Jean…" The other voice was back, too.

"Stop it!", Jean nearly screamed this time.

"_Tamed animal!" _"Jean…" _"Caged creature!" _"Jean, open your eyes…" _"Murderer!"_ "You have to open your eyes!"

"I said stop it!", Jean yelled sending an invisible wave into all directions, while holding her head in pain.

"Jean!", she heard Logan yell again.

Storm, Hank and the Professor watched the scenery with widened eyes.

"She won't make it!", Storm said terrified. "Do something!"

"No…" The Professor closed his eyes again, while the others watched Logan falling.

"You'll have to do something!", she yelled hysterically. "He'll smash…" She took hold of Hank's arm. "God, he'll smash…"

Jean looked up after she heard Logan. "I'm sorry…", she whispered and looked down as she recognized that it was too late. He had already reached Colossus height…

Logan closed his eyes as he passed him, knowing that it was over…

"NO!", Storm screamed and hid her face into Hanks chest.

"_Don't let it control you…"_

Suddenly, Jean's eyes shot open again, glowing like fire. As if someone else was controlling her she opened her arms, letting the flames consume her body, triggering her powers from within. She felt like being reborn, felt powerful and almighty again…knowing that nothing and no one could ever stop her…

The fire in her eyes became stronger as she put out a hand…

Abruptly he stopped… Puzzles, Logan slowly opened his eyes, looking directly into the green of the grass, which was few centimeters away from him. He took a deep breath and blinked as sweat was running down his face. For the first time in month he felt his body shaking and his heart nearly breaking. The last time he had felt like that was when he had to kill h…

"Jean!" Immediately Logan's eyes shot up and met hers.

As suddenly as he had stopped, he fell down…

Jean felt the strength leaving her and collapsed to the ground. She was breathing heavily and shaking all over, unable to control even an inch of her body. She felt the weight falling of her shoulders. She looked up and met his gaze. Immediately, she began to cry heart-rending.

Slowly, Logan got up after he was able to control his still shaking body again and kneeled down beside her. "Jean…"

He only saw a shadow moving as she hit him right into the face. Shocked, he turned towards her, his hand covering his burning cheek. Logan thought he had to die as he looked at her…

She was shaking violently, while tears were running unstoppable down her cheek. He noticed that she even had trouble to keep her head straight. "I hate you…", she sobbed barely audible.

When she started to hit him against his chest, while she cried even harder, Logan instinctively pulled her into his arms, holding her tight as she started to fight against him. He let her cry and sob at his shoulder, being proud of her, even if it was a very close call.

"I hate you!", she sobbed while she wrapped her arms around him.

"No, you don't!"

"You could be dead now, you stupid jerk…"

Logan chuckled, forgetting his inner turmoil as she began to kiss him feverishly.

After they had calmed down again and had gotten up, they walked over to the Professor and the other three mutants, who had watched them. Storm's cheeks were wet and her eyes reddened. She was biting her lip when she walked towards Logan, her eyes angrily fixed on him.

"Damn, 'Ro! Couldn't you use the other side?", he cursed, now holding his other cheek.

"You're a stupid asshole, Logan!", she yelled at him, grabbed his collar and shook him. "How could you do that, you freak!"

"Calm down, 'Ro!", he said calmly, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Bastard!", she shot back but not as angrily as before.

Jean avoided the look of the Professor and stepped back, so that she was half covered by Logan. She had taken his hand into hers and leaned against his shoulder, still crying silently. She could still feel her heart beating strongly within her chest, but also the power which had rushed through her. She clung closer to him when she remembered the time when she had felt this power the last time… It had been at Alkali Lake when she had successfully pulled up the Black Bird, shortly before the water had buried her… Jean frowned… How could it be the same power on the one hand, but the feeling it caused within her was so different when she was Phoenix on the other hand?

Jean blinked as Logan slowly pulled her with him. She hadn't even noticed that her thoughts had drifted off so much that she hadn't even been aware of her surroundings anymore…

When Logan looked at her worriedly, she gave him a short smile, hoping to satisfy him with it for the moment. Jean knew she couldn't postpone it anymore. If she liked it or not, she had to talk to the Professor soon… Frowning she looked over to the single gravestone next to the pond. The whole surroundings of it were still a mess, half destroyed as Phoenix had risen. An idea came to her mind and she smiled vaguely.

Logan caught the gaze of the Professor. "Thanks for not intervening!", he thought and his opposite nodded.

"It was a very close call, Logan. You risked your life, I hope you know that!", he said mentally.

"Yeah, I know", Logan thought and looked at Jean, knowing that the Professor followed his gaze. "But it was necessary…"


	12. Chapter 11

_So, since my exams at college starts next week and I still have to learn for it, it'll be the last chapter for this week and maybe the next, too. But I have already written up to page 74 now, so I only need to type up the pages. ; ) To the point where I stopped writing two days ago,…well, nope I won't tell. You'll see! ; ) Hope you will like this chapter too. Still, you can tell me what you would like to read, I will add this if it fits up to the point where the story is now. So, please review! ; )_

**Changes Chapter 11**

Weeks have past and winter had finally arrived, covering the whole institute in white snow. Many students were on the outside, having their traditional snowball fights, while some older students were keeping an eye on them.

Logan stood at his window and watched them. He had never cared much about winter and its holidays. In fact, he was pretty much stressed of students running around like bees in a beehive, decorating every naked sport in the mansion in shimmering red or green stuff, or chatting about baking cookies and the usual question "What can I give XY as a present for Christmas?". He sighed and looked at the snow like pictures which Jean had sprayed on to the windows and the Christmas decoration she had put up. Logan snorted and let himself fall backwards in the bed, the arms behind his head. He would never be a friend of holidays, that's for sure, but as long as Jean was feeling better it was fine for him. Even if his room looked like Santa's cavern right now. Logan closed his eyes and remembered the fight they had after she had managed to stop his fall. It had cost him much to convince her that it had been the only way. Of course he could understand her position, but after he had told her straight ahead that she had to experience this strong kind of fear, she had also learned to understand him.

"_You had to face your fears in order to beat it. So I had to push you to your limits, Jean! You were so scared to death that by using your powers your fear would take over and that your alter ego would take over"_, he had explained to her. _"So I had to use another fear of you, in hope that this fear was stronger than your fear of your powers…"_

"_My fear of losing you…"_, Jean had said and finally she understood the essence of his lessons. Even if she feared Phoenix more than anything else, the fear of losing him was stronger…

She had to admit that even of he had put his like at risk, it had been smart of him to fight fire with fire… _"Smart but very stupid…"_, she had thought.

However, Jean had used the whole night to take revenge on him…

Logan smirked. And she had been very successful in doing so… Never before had his body ached so much… Nevertheless, she still had the hardest step in front of her. When he had woken up the day after, Jean had left him a note that she had to talk to the Professor. Logan had spent hours on waiting for her and as she finally came back, he immediately had seen her red eyes. He had hugged her tightly when she had told him about the conversation…

_Jean had slowly entered the office after he had told her to come in. First, she did her best to avoid his eyes, but as soon as the Professor had com into sight, she had fallen down to her knees and had cried until there had been no more tears left._

_Charles hadn't said anything. He had only hold her hands and waited until she had finally stopped. Afterwards, they had spent hours on talking about the things he had never told her about and what they planned to do in the future. Charles had admitted to her how much he regretted what he had done to her years ago. He knew now that it had been wrong to cage the Phoenix within her, that the things which had happened had been inevitable as a result of it. She had to freak out one day, since she had never learned to deal with her true power…_

_Jean on the contrary, wanted to know more about her powers. She needed to know why her powers and emotions were so different, depending on who she was._

_The Professor had explained it to her very briefly, but still it had been enough for her to understand it._

"_You're a child of light and darkness, Jean. Depending on who you are, your powers differentiate from each other. As Jean, you have the power to create, you use your power for the good side. As Phoenix, you have the power to end and destroy. And that's the nature of your beast."_

_But still, he couldn't explain to her why both of them had returned… _

_They'd parted after Charles had told her how proud he was of her. She had smiled and blushed for a short moment. Thankful that her family had been returned to her, but also knowing that she stood right at the beginning of gaining control over her powers again… It was also when Jean had made a decision…_

_She wanted to be Phoenix. She hadn't had a code name before, on the contrary to her friends. Yes, she would be Phoenix and from now on she wouldn't fear her powers anymore. She finally knew that it was up to her, and only to her, what she would make out of them…_

"_And what about her?", Logan had asked after she had told him about her decision. "How do you want to refer to her?"_

_She had thought about it for a brief moment. "Dark Phoenix…For me, she's Dark Phoenix…"_

_It had been fine for him…_

Logan opened his eyes when he heard a knock on his door. Slowly, he got up and opened it, just to find Rogue standing in front of it. "Hey!", he greeted her, sensing that something was wrong.

"Is Jean here?", she asked nervously and did her best to avoid his look.

"No, she's downstairs. Wanted to make tea. She's not so well lately…" He remembered that he heard her throwing up very early this morning. He frowned and looked at the girl again. "What's wrong?"

Rogue shook her head. "Nothing! I'll…I'll come around later again." With that she was gone.

Logan watched her leave and raised an eyebrow. And he would never understand woman, too, he added silently to his "not liking Christmas" list…

Just as he had returned to his bed, the door opened and Jean came back in, holding a cup of tea in her hand and a Coke for Logan. He looked at her curiously. She was still very pale and looked sick. Slowly, Jean sat down, handing the bottle to Logan. "How're ya feelin'?"

She sighed and put the cup on the bedside table after she had drank a bit of it. "Not really better…"

Logan frowned. "You're shaking, Jean…" He put a hand to her forehead. "And you're feverish, too…" He put the blanket aside. "Come on, lay down!"

She slipped under the sheets, pulling her legs close to her body. Logan tucked her in, while looking down at her worriedly. "Do you need anything?"

Jean shook her head. "I only have an upset stomach… Might be a virus…", she said weakly with closed eyes. "I already took something against it and should be fine soon…"

Logan got up and walked over to the bathroom. When he came back he put a wet and cold flannel on her forehead. "Rogue wanted to see you. She's been here shortly before you came back. Have you seen her?"

"No. Did she say what she wanted?"

He shook his head. "No, but I think she wanted to talk to you about something serious." Logan stroked her cheek gently. "You getting warmer?"

Jean opened her eyes a bit. "No…" She could feel the coldness in every inch of her body. Logan laid down behind her and put his arms around her, holding her tight to him. "Better?"

She smiled softly and closed her eyes again, feeling how the fever dazed her head. Soon, she had fallen asleep.

The Professor was on his way back to his office when he met Ororo, who had just dismissed a few students that had detention. "Did you find out anything?", she asked and walked down the corridor next to him.

"Unfortunately, no…"

She shook her head. "That's weird."

"Yes, it is", Charles said and maneuvered his wheelchair around a corner. "How is the training going?"

"Fine!", Storm answered. "They're making progress. I wanted to raise the level the next time."

Charles nodded. "That's good to hear."

"I'm only worried…"

"About what?"

"Magneto", she said. "If Cerebro can't find him… I mean…he can hit us anytime and we aren't prepared…"

He stopped at the front of his office door. "I doubt he would attack us during the holidays. But of course I'll try again if I can find them through Cerebro somehow." He looked at her, when she took a look at her watch. "You're waiting for someone?"

"Yeah. Actually, Logan wanted to wait here for me. We planned another training unit for today." Ororo looked down the corridor. "I'll check on him."

"Okay. See you later!"

Upstairs, Logan still laid on the bed with Jean in his arms as he heard a knock on his door again. "Come in!", he said just as loud as necessary, since he didn't want to wake her.

Storm stepped in. "Hey!", She came closer to the bed and started to frown as she saw Jean. "I thought you wanted to wait for me downstairs."

"Sorry…", he said when he remembered it. "Something came in between."

"What's wrong with her?", Storm asked calmly and bent forward to take a closer look.

"She's sick", he answered. "Look, would you mind if I stay here?"

"No, of course not. Does she have a cold?"

"She said it's probably an upset stomach or a virus. She threw up twice in the morning." He felt Jean shivery again.

"A virus?", Storm asked frowning. "That's strange. No one has one lately and as far as I know she hadn't had contact to any of the students so far…"

Logan shrugged. "She's the Doc…"

"Well, then let's hope she'll get better soon. I'll ask Hank to stand in for you, then."

"Thanks!"

"See ya!" Storm gave him a smile before she left and made her way to the basement.

The days passed and Logan was happy that Christmas was finally over, even if he was the only one who felt like that. Now he was counting the days until New Year's Eve, because after that, it would take some time till the school would be decorated again. Jean had also felt better after two days of lying in bed and he was able to take care of Storm's Dangeroom instructions again. Nevertheless, he hadn't seen Rogue since the day she had stood in front of his door. He still wanted to know what was bothering her. At the same time he wanted her to come to him if she wanted to talk. He wouldn't go to her and ask for it.

Logan stepped out of the shower and reached for the towel. "Damn!", he cursed when he accidentally knocked the garbage can over which spilled all its contents on the floor. Logan sighed and got down to his knees to put everything back. He stopped abruptly as his eyes caught something. Slowly, Logan took the object into his hand and looked at it with a raised eyebrow…


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

„And have you seen how I blocked it?", Jubilee asked euphoric. "And how Bobby used his ice form to walk through the fire? Damn, this was so cool!"

"Yeah, we have, Jubes. Calm down!", Kitty said smirking. "How come that no one seems to be as possessed with the Dangerroom as you are?", she asked jokingly.

Storm shook her head smiling and gave Jean a look. "Well, anyway, I heard you all were doing fine", the red head said drinking some tea. "All of you, of course!", she added.

"Yeah. But still Wolverine is the coolest. Man, I wish I could fight like him!", the girl continued.

"Better don't!", Storm laughed. "One Wolverine is way enough!"

"Hi Logan!", Kitty suddenly said, looking towards the door.

Jean turned around. Immediately her smile froze when she looked into his eyes.

"Would you com outside for a second?", he asked coldly and she knew that something was seriously wrong.

Her heart was racing in her chest as she got up. Rogue gave her a worried look when Jean looked at her for a brief moment. The others had felt silent and watched frowning how Jean left the kitchen.

Outside, she followed Logan to a corner where he turned around and looked at her with a piercing gaze, arms folded in front of his chest. She immediately knew that he was pissed off…

"What's wrong?", Jean asked cautiously sensing his anger within him.

"Do you have to tell me anything?", he asked calmly. Too calmly, as she could tell. By now Jean nearly knew all his facets by now and this undertone made her alarm signals ring very loudly within her. "No…", she said thinking that her heart would explode any minute.

"You sure?", he asked again, raising an already knowing eyebrow.

"Yeah…", she answered insecure.

Logan reached into his rear jeans pocket and pulled out the object he had found in the bathroom, holding it directly in front of her face. "Think again!"

Jean's eyes were fixed on the longish object. "Where did you get it, Logan?", she asked.

"Let's say I had an accident with the garbage can when I stepped out of the shower…", he gave back.

Her mind was working. "It's not mine…"

Logan snorted and shook his head. "Well, whose is it then?", he asked ironically, his eyes still fixed on her. "Is Chuck making pregnancy tests and hides them afterwards in other people's garbage cans?"

"It's really not mine…", Jean said again, trying to get hold of his hand to convince him, but he backed off.

"Jean,…I warn you. Don't make a fool out of me!", he hissed angrily.

"I'm not lying, Logan. It's not mine, really!" Jean didn't know what else to say. Her heart was beating triple rhythms and she was frightened. He had never been pissed off against her, nor had she ever felt scared when he was around; besides the first time she had met him in the lab. But now she felt it…his cold eyes scared her to death. And she wondered if this was Wolverine behind them…

"Whose is it?"

"I can't tell you…"

"Jean…", Logan said warningly.

"Please, Logan, I can't…"

"You can't or you won't?"

Jean sighed and felt the despair growing stronger inside of her. She knew that she was just about to ruin everything… She bit her lip…

"Fine!", he grunted and went past her, not deign to look at her.

Her heart jumped as her fear took over. Instinctively, she grabbed his arm. "Logan, wait!"

He stopped but didn't look at her. Jean closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "It's Rogue's…", she finally said barely audible.

"What!", he asked in disbelief and turned around to face her.

"That's why she wanted to see me. So I gave her the test", she explained. "Please, Logan, I promised her not to tell anybody! It's already hard enough for her, now that her powers are back…"

Logan ran a hand through his hair. He still thought she was joking. "You're kidding right?"

"No."

"Jesus…how can this happen…?", he still shook his head.

Jean shrugged. "Well, I think you're the last one whom I need to explain IT too, right?"

Logan gave her a look.

Both stood there in silence for a few minutes, not looking at each other. "I'm sorry…", he finally said, the warmth returning to his eyes.

"It's okay…", Jean gave him a half smile. Still her heart was racing.

"Couldn't they have watched it?", he asked outraged. "There're ways to prevent something like that…"

Jean looked at him emotionless. "Well, we're not preventing _something like that _either, aren't we?"

Logan turned his head and raised an eyebrow, while she looked down. "Jean?", he asked demanding.

"I'm not pregnant, Logan…", she said while looking at her sceptical looking opposite.

"Are you sure?" She saw the coldness returning to his eyes.

"Well, what if I was?", she shot back angrily. "Things like that happen, Logan! It's in our nature to pass on our genes…"

"Not in mine", he grunted back and she felt a sharp stitch in her chest.

"Good that we discussed it!", Jean said coldly and walked away.

Logan sighed and rolled his eyes. "Jean…", he said more gently, but she didn't react.


	14. Chapter 13

**Changes Chapter 13**

The day after, Jean sat in the garden at the pond, thinking about her conversation, or should she rather call it _fight,_ with Logan. She had done her best to avoid him the whole day through, had spent time with Rogue and had tried to calm the girl, who was pretty much at the end of her nerves. She had told her that Bobby had left the room without saying anything after she had told him the news. Jean had felt so sorry for the girl, who had mostly cried during their conversation.

"What kind of mother would I be if I'm not even able to touch my child?", Rogue had said during her several sobs and had clung to Jean.

"Rogue, it's possible that your child is immune to your mutation…there's always a chance for it…", she had said, even if she knew that this chance was very little.

"Thank you, Mrs. Grey", the girl had said before she had walked back to her room.

And at night, Jean gad pretended to be asleep, knowing that Logan was staring at her, until he'd finally given up…

Jean sighed and watched the water in the pond. She wished she could help her…

"Hey…", a well known voice suddenly said next to her.

She looked up, blinking against the winter sun. Storm was standing in front of her holding a package in her hands.

"Would you mind?", she asked cautiously and nodded towards the empty space next to Jean.

"No…", Jean said. "Sit down…"

The woman sat down, putting the wrapped package next to her. Neither of them said anything, nor were they looking at each other. Jean sensed that Ororo was nervous and wondered if it was because of her, During the whole time she'd been back, her former friend hadn't come to her to talk.

"Look…", Storm began looking down at her hands first, but raising her head slowly. "I know things have gone terribly wrong between us since your return. Mostly because of me."

Jean concentrated on the half frozen water again.

"I'm so sorry for being such a bitch, Jean, really…"

Surprised she looked up, looking skeptically into the desperate face of her opposite.

"I just…", Ororo began, shaking her head in search for the right words. "It was so hard after you all were gone… I felt so lost and…everything was just too much to handle for me…"

Jean watched calmly as tears began to run down the cheeks in her face.

"I hated Phoenix for taking away my friends…my family…for leaving me alone with all the mess she's caused…" Storms took a deep breath, trying to calm herself again. "Usually we talked if we had problems, but you were gone…and Logan was such a mess and bastard…so I had no one to talk to… I…I felt so lonely, Jean. So I got angry…" She looked at her opposite who was still watching her calmly. "When you returned… I thought it would start all over again… I just saw you standing in front of Logan and thought you would take him away from me, too…" Storm sobbed and took Jean's hands into her own. "Jean, I was scared! I thought it would happen again… I hated Phoenix, so I mixed up your two personalities. I only saw her, not you. So I accidentally began to hate you, but it was all because I was so scared!" She looked at her again, desperately trying to find the slightest sign of a reaction. "I'm sorry for treating you like shit, Jean. I really am and I can understand that you might not forgive me, but…I really miss you as my friend…and I know that I destroyed our friendship…but…can't we start all over again?"

Jean sighed, breaking eye contact. She was glad that she finally knew Storm's motives, she could also understand her fear, but still she didn't know what to say… The things Storm had done and said to her had hurt her very much… On the contrary, Phoenix had hurt Storm and Jean could never imagine what she'd been through, but still…

Storm looked down. "I see…", she said since Jean had shown no reaction and got up.

"Wait!", the other woman said holding her back. "I'm sorry for not saying anything. I was thinking." She took a step forward. "'Ro, I'd be glad if we could forget everything. I really miss talking to you, too."

Storm smiled gladly and hugged her opposite. "Thank you…"

Jean smiled back. "So what do you got there?", she asked curiously after a while nodding towards the package.

"Oh this…", Storm said taking the package into her hands again. "Well, actually we wanted to give it to you on Christmas, but we couldn't finish it until then."

"Who is we?", Jean asked taking the gift from her.

"Bobby, Rogue, Kitty, Peter, the professor, Logan and me,…so everyone actually. It was Logan's idea after you told him about your decision."

Jean frowned, wondering what might be in the package.

"Come on, open it!"

The red head sat down again and started to unwrap it. Her heart was pounding strongly in her chest.

"Oh, the small boy in it is from Logan alone", Ororo added.

"Oh my God…", Jean gasped as she finally saw her gift.

"You like it?"

"I love it!", Jean said with tears in her eyes. "This is wonderful…" Gently she ran her hands over the black leather uniform which she immediately recognized as a new version of her old one. Old, except the new golden emblem on the chest which resembled a phoenix with open wings. She couldn't help as a single tear ran down her cheek. Not only the suit made her happy, the message behind it said much more. She belonged to them again. She's finally arrived back home…

"Glad that you like it!", Storm said smiling brightly at her.

Jean's eyes caught the smaller package. She wondered what Logan might have gotten her… She unwrapped it and opened the small blue box, which had been hidden in it. She gasped for air again as she saw the content of the box.

"Gosh…that one is beautiful!", she heard Storm saying as the woman had bent forward to see what she had gotten.

Slowly, Jean took the pendant into her hands, looking at it from all sides. It was a silver bird, which she immediately recognized as a rising Phoenix. Its head looked towards heaven while its wings were spread proudly. Dark blue shimmering mussel shell stones were inlaid into the wings, making it even look more beautiful than it already was, while two golden stones were shimmering at its tail. Lost in thoughts, Jean ran her thumb over it. Immediately her memories of their fight returned to her.

"You don't like it?", Storm asked surprised, since she'd immediately fallen in love with the pendant.

"No, I love it…", Jean said. "It's just…"

"What?", the other woman asked worriedly.

"We had a fight and I haven't talked to him since yesterday…"

Storm nodded "Well, I already knew it…he'd looked pretty pissed yesterday in the kitchen."

"Yeah, he was…", Jean said still looking at the Phoenix. She'd never know Logan had a sense for the things she liked…

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She sighed, lowering her hands. "Depends if you already know about Rogue…"

"Yeah, I do", Storm said bitterly. "I've found her sitting in the kitchen and crying very early this morning."

"Well, Logan accidentally found the pregnancy test in our bathroom which she's gotten from me and thought I was hiding something from him."

"Oh…", Storm said nodding. "But he can't have still been pissed off after you told him, right? Or haven't you told him about Rogue?"

"I had to even if I'd promised her not to tell anybody."

"What's the matter then? I don't understand…"

Jean took a look around the garden, looking for the right words. "He couldn't understand how things like that can happen, so we ended up fighting about the nature of humans to pass on their genes…" She still felt the pain in her heart.

Storm frowned. "And?"

Jean looked at her sadly. "Well, he made pretty clear that it's not in his nature to pass on his genes…", she said bitterly using his words.

Ororo still frowned and looked at her friend. "But where's the problem…?" she asked and waited for an answer that could make her understand.

Jean stayed calm and looked at the Phoenix again.

"Jean…are you pregnant, too?", Storm finally asked.

"No…", her opposite said after a few seconds.

Storm looked at her skeptically. "Well, you don't seem to be so sure of it…"

"Can we just leave it?", Jean asked stressed.

"Okay."

"Have you seen Logan lately?", she asked after a brief moment.

"Yeah, he was in the kitchen before I came here. Being-an-asshole-mood included!"

"Thanks!", Jean said and got up, taking her presents with her. "So, I think have to talk to him now…"

"Well, I'm pretty sure he feels sorry…", Storm smirked. "You know that he's a softy around you!"

Jean smile. "You coming?"

Storm got up, too, and they walked back towards the mansion. Neither of them saw how the ground began to split up near the single stone…

Jean finally found Logan in the library. He sat in a chair and was reading a book. Even if she knew that his senses gad already told him that she was there, Logan didn't move a bit. Her heart was racing as she stepped closer. She knew that hew was angry, since she'd ignored him, nevertheless, he'd hurt her, too. Jean sighed and sat down on the armrest. He still didn't look up.

"What are you reading?", she asked cautiously, hoping that she'd get his attention.

"A book…", he grunted, still not looking at her.

"Can we leave it, Logan?", Jean asked frustrated.

Logan turned over a page. "Leave what?"

"Hurting each other?"

"Can't remember doing that…"

With a blink she made his book crash against the wall. "Then think again!", she hissed, feeling that her anger overwhelmed her. Jean blinked again. "Sorry…"

Logan turned his head around and they were finally looking at each other. "Well, I can't pretend that I'm reading anymore, can I?"

"Pretend?", she asked raising an eyebrow.

He shrugged. "Don't ask me what that damn book was about. I was thinking about you…"

Jean blushed. "So are we good again?"

"No!", he said seriously. She looked down offended. He put two fingers under her chin and raised her head up. "At least not as long as you just sit there without kissing me!", he smirked.

"Oh, damn you, Logan!", Jean cursed and slapped him against his chest which made him chuckle.

With a simple move of his arm, she was sitting astride on his lap and he kissed her. "Now we're good again."

"Jerk!", Jean cursed smiling down at him. Just as she was about to kiss him again, the door slammed open and Storm stood in the doorway. "Jean…", she said breathlessly.

Jean looked at her frowning and suddenly felt fear climbing up to her heart. By only looking into Storm's eyes, she immediately knew that something terrible must have happened. Despite the distance she could see Ororo's tears. "What happened?", Logan asked, since Jean didn't react.

Storm swallowed, still gasping for air. "It's…it's Scott…"

_http // (the phoenix pendant)_


	15. Chapter 14

_I posted the link in my forums. Just visit the first one. You'll find the link there!_

**Changes Chapter 14**

It was already far past midnight when Jean stepped into the kitchen in the search for food. After she'd gotten herself something to eat, she sat down on a chair and thought about the unexpected reunion with Scott, which had taken place only few hours ago…

After Storm had interrupted Logan and her in the library, she had ran down the stairs to the Professor's office, unaware that Logan and Ororo followed her. Jean had thought her heart had stopped beating as she'd opened the door and saw Scott standing in front of the desk, completely undamaged and alive. She hadn't been able to move, too deep was the shock that he'd returned, too. It had appeared to Jean like a movie, she couldn't believe that it was real. Not even when Scott embraced her tightly and kissed her desperately, whispering in her ear how much he'd missed her…

Jean hadn't been able to stop him. She was unable to tell her brain to move or say something. "How?", was everything she was capable to ask, but Scott had only shaken his head and had answered "Does it matter?".

Now, while she was sitting in the kitchen, it mattered to her, in fact it mattered a lot… Not only had Logan seen the kiss, she also felt completely torn between them again. It had taken so long until she'd finally come over Scott's death and her role in it and now he was back again, causing her world to fall apart… Jean sighed. How should she tell him what happened in the past year? He wouldn't understand it…she was completely certain about it…

"Can't sleep to?"

She looked up. There he stood in the doorway, looking at her through his red glasses. It was just like before, yet completely different. She was completely different…

"No, I was hungry", Jean answered, watching him coming closer. He stopped next to her and bent forward to kiss her, when she jumped. "You wanna eat something too?", Jean asked nervously and could tell that he was frwning, even without looking at him.

Scott turned her around and looked at her, while she did her best to avoid his look. "What's wrong, Jean?", he finally asked her while he put his hands on both sides next to her, hoping that it would stop her from running off again.

"Nothing!", Jean lied and fixed her eyes on the fridge.

"Look, I don't blame you, Jean. I'd known before Alkali Lake that something was wrong with you, but…"

"I'm fine, Scott. Nothing's wrong with me…"

He took her left hand into his. "Then why are you avoiding me just now?"

"I'm…still confused, that's all…" Jean couldn't stop him from kissing her again.

"God, I missed you…", he whispered and pulled her close. "I can't tell you how much I missed you, Jean…"

Jean felt her heart racing in her chest. Him being so close felt suddenly so wrong. She wanted him to step back, to stop being near her… "Scott…"

"I was wondering", he said, still holding her tight. "I sneaked into your old room before I got here, but your stuff was gone…so I was wondering where you're staying at?"

"My room!", someone grunted from the doorway.

Jean immediately pushed Scott away when she recognized Logan who leant against the frame and watched them closely with narrowed eyes. Scott had turned around and was now facing him. "Your room?", he asked frowning. "But where are you staying at then?"

Logan folded his arms in front of his chest, his eyes fixed on Jean who looked down feeling embarrassed. "What do you think?", Logan grunted with one last look on Jean before he walked away.

Jean felt her mind and heart racing. Scott just stood there and looked at her in shock. "He's kidding right?", he asked in disbelief and stepped closer. "Tell me that he's joking!" When she didn't answer, he grabbed her hands. "Tell me, Jean!", Scott almost yelled in despair.

"Stop it…", Jean said barely audible and closed her eyes, trying to push him away.

"How can you do that?", he asked and shook his head. "How can you do that to me? To us?"

"Please…", she begged and grimaced in pain.

"Damn it, tell me, Jean! Why him?", he demanded to know desperately and shook her slightly, unaware that things began to float around and that she began to breathe heavily.

"I said stop it!", she suddenly screamed and sent him backwards against the cupboards, while the windows shattered loudly into thousand pieces. Scott watched her eyes darken and her skin becoming veined as her body began to shake violently…


	16. Chapter 15

**Changes Chapter 15**

"Jean…", he said cautiously and wanted to get up, when Logan entered breathlessly the kitchen and watched the whole scenery with widened eyes.

"Damn it!", he cursed and brought Jean to her knees by taking her into his arms. "Look at me, Jean!", Logan demanded. "Focus on me!"

Scott came slowly closer, his eyes fixed on her.

"Stay away from her!", Logan hissed and narrowed his eyes, hearing the cupboards shaking violently. He couldn't use her to freak out even more.

In the meanwhile, Storm and the Professor had arrived. As soon as they saw Jean, they stopped, their eyes anxiously fixed on Logan, who tried to get her attention again.

"Come on, Jean! Focus on me!", he said and took her head into his hands, completely aware of the shaking boards and the water which began to flow upwards. "Look at me!"

Storm was looking at the professor whose eyes were still fixed on Phoenix. He had to trust Logan with this. If he only tried to talk to Jean mentally, she would very likely freak out completely and destroy everything in her radius.

Scott was breathing heavily,. He didn't understand what was happening, since he had never seen or met Phoenix before. He felt helpless; still his urge to support her was stronger.

"I said stay away!", Logan yelled at him, as Scott stepped forward and popped his claws on the left hand to make him understand that he meant it. "Damn it, get him away from here!"

The professor came a bit closer. "Scott. Come with me."

"But…", Scott said and switched his eyes to Jean again who was still shaking violently, her eyes closed in pain.

"Please! It's doing no good to her. I'll explain everything to you, but you have to come with me."

Finally, he nodded and left the room slowly.

As soon as he was gone, things dropped to the ground again and Jean blinked.

"That's good! Look at me!", Logan said and began to stroke her cheeks gently. He saw her green eyes coming to the surface again. "Come on, you're doing fine. Focus on me!"

Confused, Jean looked around. Her breath and heart rate were still completely out of control.

As soon as she realized what had happened, she began to cry heavily. Logan embraced her, rocking her back and forth. "It's fine, Jean. Nothing has happened. It's okay…"

"Is she okay?", Storm asked and came slowly closer.

"She'll be", he assured her and looked down on her.

"I'm sorry…", she sobbed heavily and clung to him, burying her face into his neck.

"How is she?", the professor asked and came back with Scott, whose face was the perfect mirror of his inner turmoil. Jean's hands were covering her ears immediately, while she grimaced as if she was in pain.

"She'll be fine", Logan said as he suddenly felt her body tense.

"Please, stop…", she said.

All eyes were fixed on her as she backed away from Logan, grimacing while her hands were holding her head. "Please stop it…"

"Stop what, Jeannie?", Logan asked worriedly.

"Thinking… I can hear you all together…", she breathed heavily. "It hurts…please stop it!" She began to shake again.

"Try to remember what we practiced!", Logan said and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Focus on an object. Concentrate on it…" He helped her on a chair and watched her as she concentrated on the dripping faucet. After a few minutes, she finally relaxed, even if she was still holding her head.

"I'm sorry…", Scott said. "I didn't know…"

"Save it!", Logan grunted and shoot an angry look at him.

"Well, you could have said anything!"

"You could have just leaved her alone, bub!"

"She's not your property!", Scott hissed angrily and stepped forward,

Jean grimaced and strengthened her grip on her head and abdomen. Her head hurt so much that she hoped it would explode any minute. She couldn't bear it anymore…

"Guys, stop it!", Storm said loudly and stepped between Logan and Scott, who were about to unleash a testosterone fight again. She'd seen that Jean was in pain. "Think about Jean!"

The two men stopped talking but were still shooting deadly looks at each other.

"You okay?", Storm asked calmly and laid Jean a hand on her shoulder. She knew her friend was far away from being well.

Jean looked at her with wet cheeks and nodded slowly, ignoring the turmoil in her head and the voices as good as she could. She needed a break. "Can I stay at your room for a few days?", she asked after a moment.

Storm gave Logan a look who had turned his head in surprise. "Yeah…sure", she said puzzled. "Come on."

Jean got up slowly, a hand on her abdomen. She laid the other on Logan's shoulder, telling him mentally that she needed to be alone right now, when he came closer with a confused look on his face. He nodded silently and watched her leave. The Professor waited until both women were gone, before he turned to Logan. "How could this happen again? She was doing so well in the past months. How could it be that Dark Phoenix was able to take over?"

Logan glanced fleetingly at Scott. "Because of heightened stress, I think."

"Oh, now it is my fault…", Scott nodded feeling pissed right now.

"Listen, bub!", the other man said narrowing his eyes. "If Jean has her back to the wall or if a situation is too much for her to handle, or if she gets scared…then her alter ego takes over!", he explained angrily. "So, yes, it's your fault since you were the only one with her, weren't ya?"

Scott snorted. "She had never been afraid of me… You've done a great job, Logan…"

Logan frowned. "What do you mean?"

Scott came closer until he was only centimeters away and looked at him. "Don't tell me that it comes just in time for you. You always wanted to get between us. From the first moment you came into this school, you were after her. So congrats, Logan. You finally reached your aim!"

Logan looked at him, smirking arrogantly into his face. He suppressed his upcoming anger the best he could.

"Scott…", the Professor said coming closer. "You don't really believe that Logan was happy after you were gone…" He looked at his former student in disbelief.

"Let's say, I believe he took advantage of the situation… Didn't you?", he said towards Logan, looking at him knowingly. "Was it a joke back then, when you told me that she chose me?"

His opposite stood with arms akimbo. "Look, you're gone for over a year. You can't expect that Jean does the same as you did after her death. Sitting in her room and stop caring about the things which are going on in her surroundings. You left us alone back then, you didn't care that things were going to hell. She tried at least to fight her inner demons and be of help. And now you came back and destroyed the whole work of over half a year, just by pushing her too hard. So, who did the great job, bub?"

Now Scott was the one who smirked. "And what did you do? Comfort her in her lonely nights?" Before he could react, Logan had grabbed him by the collar and pushed him hard against the counter.

"Logan!", Charles said warningly, preparing himself to intervene if necessary.

"You can say such things to me, pal, but I warn you to talk about her like that!", Logan hissed furiously and pushed him away from him with all his might.

Scott crashed into the fridge. He laughed. "And I believed that she's tamed you…"

Logan breathed heavily and felt Wolverine coming to the surface. "Logan!", Charles tried again. "Don't! Think about Jean. She's already miserable enough and doesn't need the two of you to fight here…"His opposite snorted and left without looking at Scott once more.

"Why did you do that?", the Professor asked and came closer to the man who still sat on the ground and held his ribs on one side.

"Why?", Scott asked in return and got up slowly, biting his lips as he felt the pain rushing through his body. He didn't hide his tears anymore. He had done it in front of Logan, but now he couldn't hold them back. "What would you do?", he asked bitterly and began to limp towards the door. "You come back just to be told that you lost the woman you love again…"

In the meanwhile, Jean sat on Storm's bed and was starring on an invisible object in front of her. Unaware of the things which had taken place in the kitchen, she had still felt Logan's fury within her.

"Here", Storm said handing over a glass of water.

"Thanks…"

"You feeling better?", the woman asked and sat down next to her.

"Yeah. I don't know how this could happen…" Jean shook her head. "I've worked with Logan on shielding thoughts again… But…the barriers have just fallen down…"

"What did Scott do? Did he do something you didn't want him to do?"

Jean looked down on her glass. "He kissed me…"

"And you didn't want him to do that?"

She shook her head. "It felt so wrong… It wasn't right and then Logan…"

Storm frowned. "What about Logan?"

"He saw it… I felt his anger…"

"Well, Scott didn't know about Logan and you…", Ororo said looking around her room. "So both are the ones who have to be blamed for it."

"No!" Jean shook her head again. "It was Scott. Logan didn't do anything. Scott got angry and pushed me against the counter…"

"And you didn't know what to do…" Storm nodded in understanding. "Well, we can't change things anymore, can we?"

"I won't even imagine what could have happened…"

"Nothing serious did happen, Jean!" She got up. "I'll get you some stuff from your room, okay?"

"Thanks!", Jean said tiredly and laid back still with her hand on her abdomen.

"Oh and, Jean!", Storm said and pulled a small, longish box out of her drawer. "I want you to do this!" She laid it down on the bedside table.

Jean looked at her frowning. As she recognized the box, she looked at Storm with widened eyes.

"Why are you so afraid of it?", Ororo asked and folded her arms in front of her chest.

"He said it… He won't…", Jean began but broke of.

"You think he's gonna leave you?"

The redhead nodded slowly, turning the box in her hands.

Storm sighed and walked towards the door. "Do it! And if he really leaves you because of it, than he's the asshole I thought he was when he first stepped into this school", she said and opened the door. "And besides, I already told you that he's a softie around you!" With that she was gone and left back a frightened Jean.

Logan just came out of the bathroom as Storm stepped into his room.

"Oh…", she said surprised and noticed that she starred at his naked torso. I…I thought you were still downstairs…"

"Nope", he grunted and pulled a grey tank top over his head. "How is she doing?"

"Not so well. I wanted to get some stuff from her."

Logan made an inviting gesture and sat down on his bed. Storm noticed that he was in a more than pretty bad mood. "Hey, she'll be back soon. She only needs some time to settle things…"

"I hope so…", he said barely audible. She smirked. "What?", he asked and narrowed his eyes.

"Lovesick, eh?" Storm noticed the warning look he gave her immediately. "Ah, come on, Logan. You can't scare me anymore. You already lost your bad boy image, so you can't repair it by looking at me like that!"

"What ever!"

"Besides…", she asked after she was finished with packing. "Do I have to take anything into consideration?"

He shrugged. "No stress. If her emotions get out of control, it might become dangerous. If she hears too many thoughts and voices, she's to concentrate on an object. And if she has nightmares or the room starts to shake, get out of there and get me immediately!"

She nodded. "Okay, I'll keep that in mind." She walked towards the door and stopped abruptly. "Can I ask you something?", she asked with her hand on the doorknob.

"You can ask me anything, but there's no guarantee that I'll answer."

Storm smirked. That was just like him… "Would you leave her?"

"What!", Logan asked puzzled and sat up.

"Honestly, Logan. What would be a reason for you to leave her?"

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "What is this, Storm?"

"Answer it, Logan!"

He sighed. He didn't know what the woman in front of him aimed to achieve with it, but he didn't want to think about it either. He was too tired. "I wouldn't. Why are you asking it anyway?", he asked, despite his earlier thoughts.

"Never?"

"Not as long ass he doesn't want me to leave…", he gave back stressed.

Storm nodded and opened the door. "I hope so. Do you want me to tell her anything?"

"Good night!"

"'Kay. Night, Logan!"

He watched her leave and shook his head. "Women…"

Storm closed the door to her room and put down Jean's stuff on the bed. "I'm back!", she said and waited for an answer out of the bathroom. "Jean?", she asked frowning and came closer. She watched as the door opened slowly and Jean came out. Storm immediately saw her red eyes and wet cheeks, the despair of the woman in front of her… "Come here…", she said and took Jean into her arms, who immediately began to cry heartrendingly. "He won't leave you…", Storm whispered into her ear and stroke her back reassuringly. "I promise…He'll never leave you…"

**Thanks to everyone for the nice reviews: ) I'm glad that you like it so far. Hope you liked this one too!**


	17. Chapter 16

**Changes Chapter 16**

On the next morning, everyone sat in the kitchen for breakfast. The younger mutants only looked at each other, waiting for a new testosterone fight, since Logan and Scott were shooting deadly looks at each other. Therefore, no one of them dared to say anything, afraid to put themselves in the firing line.

Suddenly, Logan looked towards the door. He could hear a noise the others couldn't. Within seconds, Ororo stormed into the kitchen. Breathlessly, she looked around until her eyes met his. He immediately knew that something was wrong and jumped towards the door.

Storm ran as fast as she could after him, unaware that Scott followed them. Logan stopped at her room door and walked inside, his heart beating heavily. Storm stopped behind him.

"I woke up and thought she was still sleeping, so I used the bathroom first and wanted to wake her afterwards. But she didn't react…", she said frightened and hysterically.

He had sat down on the edge of the bed and checked on Jean. Anxiously, he laid his finger on her throat. "She's still alive… But her skin is burning like hell…"

"I get Hank and the Professor!", Storm said and ran out of the room.

"What's wrong with her?", Scott asked anxiously.

"Dunno…"

"Is she sick?"

"I said I don't know!", Logan grunted and pulled Jean up into his arms to carry her down to the lab.

Storm leant against the cold wall of the basement and waited. The Professor had followed Hank into the lab and had asked them to wait outside. She looked over to Logan who leant on the opposite wall, his eyes fixed on the floor. She knew his calm façade wasn't real. He was boiling from the inside. Stressed, she looked to Scott who was walking up and down, or at least as good as he could, since his rips had taken quiet a lot of damage from Logan. Storm sighed. She didn't know how long they're already waiting…

Suddenly, Logan looked towards the door and she knew that he must have heard something. Before she was able to ask him, the large round door with the X in the middle opened and Hank came into sight.

"How is she?", all three of them nearly asked at the same time, whereupon Scott and Logan exchanged deadly glanced again.

Hank ran a hand through his thick blue hair and sighed. "I can't help her here. She need to go into a hospital…"

"We can't take her to a hospital!", Scott said. "There've been several attacks on mutants early this morning."

"I know. We've our hands full because of it. They did a terrible mistake with the cure…", Hank said bitterly. "Now we have to clean up their mess…"

"Hey, bub!", Logan said while putting his hands to his hip. "I don't care about the mess in the city right now. What's wrong with Jean?"

Hank looked him directly into the eyes and Storm was confident that she had seen a slight shimmer of anger in Hank's eyes. "She's still unconscious and the fever she has is what I'd call life threatening…"Logan bit his lip and looked down, his heart racing in fear.

"And even if she survives…", Hank continued. "I don't know if I can save the babies, too…"

Abruptly, Logan and Scott looked up, their expressions were completely blank. "What!", both men asked at the same time.

Hank frowned. "She's four months pregnant…didn't you know that?"

Scott looked at Logan completely expressionless, while Logan took a closer look on Storm. He had noticed that she hadn't reacted to the news. "You knew that?", he asked in disbelief and narrowed his eyes.

"I had premonitions…", Storm swallowed. "She did a test while I was getting her stuff…"

Logan snorted and turned away from them, while shaking his head. "Did she know it before?", he asked barely audible after a while.

"I'm not sure… I think she ignored it… Logan, she was afraid…", storm tried to explain calmly.

"Of what!", he asked loudly and turned around.

"Maybe of your reaction?", Scott asked ironically and earned a furious look of the man in front of him. "I mean it, Logan!", he continued and returned the look. "You're not someone who takes care of a family. You're a loner who wants to have fun and that's it!"

"Scott!", Storm warned him. "Don't!"

"Ah, come on, 'Ro!", the man said. "She was afraid that he'd leave her, wasn't she?"

Logan switched his eyes towards her, forgetting for a brief moment that the beast within him wanted to ram its claws into Cyclops. He, on the contrary, needed to know the truth.

Storm nodded slowly. "Yeah…"

Logan snorted. "So that's why you asked those questions at night, wasn't it?"

"Logan, I'm sorry… I'd to know…"

"Now you do!", he hissed and walked away.

"Forget him!", Scott said. "She's better off without him!"

Hank could have sworn that, if the walls hadn't been so thick, he'd heard a thunderstorm coming up. Ororo turned around, her eyes narrowed and almost white. "You listen to me now!", she shot back furiously. "You've no idea what has happened in the past year, so shut your mouth!"

"I don't know… I think the name's stupid…", Rogue said and kept on walking down the corridor.

"Stupid?", Bobby asked. "It's my uncle's name!"

She laughed. "Sorry, but now one ever said that it's gonna be a boy!" Surprised she looked up and began to frown. "Where are ya going?", she asked puzzled as Logan walked past them in his leather jacket and with his bag on his back.

"Away!", he grunted without looking at them.

"You're leaving!", she asked and looked at Bobby who also frowned and seemed to be as confused as she was.

"Hey!", someone said behind them. Both of them turned around and saw Ororo approaching.

"Have you guys seen Logan?", she asked with an urgent undertone.

"Uh, yeah…", Bobby answered. "He just left…"

"Left!", the woman asked in disbelief. "What do you mean _left_!"

"Well, he'd a bag with him…", Rogue explained still wondering what was going on.

Storm snorted. "I don't believe that…", she ran a hand over her forehead. "When did you see him?"

"He walked past us just a few seconds before you came", Bobby said.

"Thanks!", Storm said and continued to run down the corridor as fast as she could.

Just as she reached the front door, she heard a motorbike disappearing. "Damn it!", she cursed as she saw him driving it towards the gate. "You son of a bitch!", Storm shouted after him and immediately the sky darkened…

**Yeah, I know this one is short, but the next one is much longer. ; ) Hope you like it. And I'm pretty sure you'll be mad at me after you read the next chapter. ; ) I wrote up to page 91 so far. So that means up to, let me think…Chapter 20 or something. **_PS: OMG I just checked my emails. : o Thanks for all those nice reviews! I was totally shocked that so many of you have written their opinions to it! Thank you so, so much for your support! hug_


	18. Chapter 17

**Changes Chapter 17**

Many hours later, Ororo was taking the elevator on her way to the basement again. She had spent the whole day on Jean's side, most of the time with Scott, but the Professor had sent both away. He wanted them to eat and sleep, before they, too, would become sick. Since Storm couldn't find any sleep, she walked down the corridor towards the lab again. She still felt lucky that Hank and the Professor had both helped her to calm Scott down, who'd been furious after Logan had left. She, too, was more than mad and disappointed because of his departure and had sworn that if she ever met him again, she'd make sure that his healing factor wouldn't keep up fixing the damage she'd cause. Storm couldn't believe that she's been so wrong…he'd really left Jean alone…

Angrily, she walked through the giant double door which led her to the lab. Storm knew that no one else was here besides her and Jean, of course. Hank wanted to check on Jean on the next morning again, while the Professor was doing check ups mentally. Just as she'd walked in, Ororo froze and looked into the direction of where Jean laid. Slowly, she came closer. "I thought…"

"What? That the son of a bitch left?", Logan asked and looked up at her.

"Yeah…we thought you took off…", she explained, still being confused.

He snorted. "You don't know me…"

"Then why did you go?", Storm asked and stopped next to him.

Logan turned his head and looked at Jean again. His hand still holding hers. "I'd to work off my rage. So if you hear about a half destroyed wood in the news, it wasn't a hurricane…"

She smiled vaguely. "It was because of Scott, wasn't it?"

"Mostly", he grunted.

Storm looked at the monitors which supervised Jean's vitals. "How long are you already sitting here?"

"Dunno…" He got up and took the already warm cloth from Jean's forehead. Ororo watched him as he dipped it into cold water and put it back to her forehead. Even if he would never admit it, she could see the fear in his eyes. Instinctively, she put a hand on his shoulder.

"She'll make it! All three of them will…"

"I hope so…", Logan said barely audible.

"Hank thinks it's a worse version of the flu", she explained. "And combined with her pregnancy and the stress she had…"

He shook his head. "It's not a virus…"

Storm frowned. "How do you know?"

"Take a look at her eyes." He nodded towards them. "She's battling her, I think…"

She did as he said and cautiously opened Jean's eyes. Immediately, Ororo gasped. "It wasn't like that a few hours ago…", she said while she looked at the orange glowing left and the pitch black and red glowing right eye. "Should I get Xavier?"

He shook his head again. "He was here before. She's blocking him."

Storm sighed. "But we've to do something… I mean…" Feeling totally lost, she shook her head and looked around the room. "How could that have happened anyway?"

Logan snorted again. "Ask Scooter boy! He brought her back."

"You think it was his fault?", she asked raising an eyebrow.

"Well, it was him who made her freak out again, wasn't it? He destroyed the whole results we achieved completely, so it was easy for her to take over again…"

Storm thought about his words for a moment. She had to admit that he got a standpoint…

"You don't have to stay, 'Ro", he said after a while and looked at her.

"I'm fine, Logan. It's you who shouldn't overwork his healing factor again."

"Nope!", he gave back and shook his head. "If Magneto attacks us it is you who must be ready. I can't fight him without kissing the ground again."

"Fine… But if you get too tired…"

"Yeah, yeah!", he waved her off.

Storm shook her head. "You're incorrigible!"

Week past and Jean's constitution didn't change for good. While Logan left her only to shower or eat something, the Professor had called Moira, since Hank couldn't help anymore. But even Moira couldn't do much. The medicine she gave Jean against the fever didn't help, it only made it worse.

One day, Moira came into the lab, just to find Logan sleeping in his chair. Just as she came closer, he jumped and looked at her in confusion.

"You know, Logan", she said while checking the monitors. "You should really go to bed and sleep for a few hours." He only snorted and ran a hand through his face. "I mean it!", Moira said warningly. "Your body needs sleep, otherwise I can put up a bed right next to her…"

"Any changes?", Logan asked to change the subject.

"No…unfortunately not." She sighed. "Honestly…I don't know what to with her anymore…" She looked at him completely seriously. "Logan…I already said it to Charles…"

"What?", he asked narrowing his eyes. Still his heart began to beat triple rhythms. Fear was taking over…

"Her vitals are getting worse day after day…", Moira explained calmly. "I doubt…I doubt she'll make it…"

"She will…", Logan gave back, looking at Jean again.

"It's still a miracle to me that the embryos are still alive…", she added barely audible, but still he had heard it.

"Well, they're my kids in the end…"

Moira smiled vaguely and walked towards the door again. "Since I've no doubt that you are not coming to dinner again…"

"Yeah, I'll eat something later!", he waved her off.

"Okay, but don't forget it! I'll come back in an hour."

Logan waited until he couldn't hear her anymore and even a bit longer, since he felt dead drunk because of his lack of sleep. His heightened senses weren't working so well either and his healing factor was already doing overtime. He let his head sink into his hands and took a deep breath, before he ran his hands through his hair. With his eyes fixed on Jean he took one hand of hers into his, while he gently rested the other on her now bigger belly. "I beg you, Jean", he said barely audible and with a desperate undertone. "Beat that bitch. You have to beat her!" Logan paused for a moment and shook his head, while looking down. "I can't lose you again, Jeannie. I need you. The three of you…" He closed his eyes and fought against the tears. "Please, Jeannie…"

"Now…that's what I call a surprise…"

Logan jerked around as he heard the well known voice behind him. His eyes widened.

"She really has marvelous powers, hasn't she?", Magneto asked while he stepped closer, his eye's fixed on Logan.

He, on the contrary, looked behind him for a brief moment, before he faced the man in front of him again. His brain was searching for a solution, but he couldn't find one. He had no chance against the leader of the brotherhood, which meant that not only he was in danger, but also Jean and his unborn children… Instinctively, he popped his claws as he took notice of Mystique, Juggernaut and Pyro who were standing right behind their leader.

"You never learn, do you?", Magneto asked pejorative and raised his hand which caused Logan to froze immediately.

"You won't get her!", Logan grunted and narrowed his eyes. His heart was racing, while he left the ground. He cursed himself for being so careless before. His only hope was that someone had heard them enter or that at least the Professor would have taken notice of it…

Magneto smiled devilishly. "I'm not interested in her", he said. "Not yet…"

Logan breathed heavily. In moments like these he cursed his adamantium skeleton. "Well, no matter what, it wouldn't make any difference now, would it?", he thought sarcastically and tried with all his strength to move.

"You're the first in my list!", his opposite hissed and moved him towards the opposite wall. "I still must show my appreciation…" Logan watched magneto's sinister smile fade immediately. With a simple move of his arm, he sent him through the opposite wall. Groaning, Logan clenched his teeth as he felt the stars dancing in front of him and as the pain of his dislocated right shoulder rushed through his entire, which made him retch for a brief moment. Slowly, Logan tried to get up, ignoring the blinking lights he saw in front of him. Just as he finally stood again, he smashed again against the wall, just to crash into the ceiling and the floor only seconds later. Dazed, he tasted the blood in his mouth and felt the thick liquid running down his face. When Logan raised his head, Magneto was standing in front of him, looking down at him merciless and pinning him down to the cold floor again. "I'll teach you loyalty to your own kind!", he hissed and sent Logan from the left wall to the right and back.

Logan groaned loudly when Magneto tore his bones apart, fighting constantly against the upcoming blackness. "Let's see if you're really indestructible…", he heard Magneto say from very far away. Again he crashed against the wall. Heavily breathing, Logan slowly looked up when he felt three needles in his back. His eyes widened when he met Mystique's sinister smile and recognized the objects in her hands immediately. Soon, he felt his heart racing even more when his body began to change.

"I doubt you're so lucky this time", Magneto smiled and nodded towards Pyro.

Despite his mad playing circulation and his violently shaking bodies, Logan got up to his feet as fast as he could and stepped back. His eyes were fixed in his opposite who moved smirking into position.

"Barbeque anyone?", the boy said and threw a huge flame towards Logan who barely managed to jump aside. The sweat was running down his face, mixing with the bleeding open wounds, but Logan knew he wasn't sweating because of the exertion. It was mortal fear which ate him up inside…and even if he tried to stay calm, his heart rate and breathing rhythms couldn't betray anyone. Every inch of his body hurt like hell, most parts already felt numb, but he couldn't give in to the animal in him. That part of him told him to run, but he couldn't… Not only because of Jean and the kids, he wouldn't come far anyway…

Logan yelled loudly as a huge flame hit him right in the chest, burning his clothes away and eating his skin, leaving back torn flesh. He began to breathe irregularly, fighting harder against the blackness and his brain which wanted to shut down. Logan fell down to his knew shaking. "Son of a bitch…", he cursed and was lifted up into the air again.

"Time to fly!" With heavy steps, Juggernaut ran towards the paralyzed Logan and sent him backwards down the corridor.

Logan gasped for air after he finally landed on the floor again, trying desperately to fill his lungs… In moments liked this, on the contrary, he was grateful to have the adamantium skeleton. Slowly, he opened his eyes, just to close them again. His surroundings were moving, making him feel even more worse than he already was. The lack of sleep and food attracted attention. Suddenly, he lifted his head and retched, spilling blood to the floor. Heavily breathing and with one hand pressed on his stomach, Logan opened his eyes again. The sweat burned in them and made his view murky. The alarm bell was only meters away…if he could only get up… Taking deep breaths and ignoring the immense pain which rushed through his body and nearly caused him to fade, Logan stumbled towards it, feeling that his legs failed. While falling again, he yelled as he reached out his dislocated arm and hit the button. Only seconds later, the alarm set off.

"Fool!", Magneto said and raised him up again. "Do you really think I would have let you done this if it wasn't planned?" Logan's eyes widened and he coughed heavily again, spilling even more blood. "You little friends will run downstairs, while we finish you on the outside…"

Again Logan crashed into the wall and winced, as he moved. He knew his rips couldn't break…but still his left lung refused to take up air… He felt someone grapping his collar and soon he was pulled towards the emergency exit. The door closed as he heard the elevator door open…

On the outside, Magneto lifted him up again. "Painful, isn't it? If your abilities were taken away from you…"

"You don't need yours!", Logan hissed and gasped for air again.

His opposite smiled darkly. "You neither…anymore…" as he'd done it in the woods before, he sent the former mutant backwards through the trees.

Logan felt his flesh being torn open, felt the scratches and deeper wounds every collision left. He yelled in pain, when a branch went through his left lung. He knew the wet liquid which was covering his whole body by now, wasn't only sweat anymore. Suddenly, he passed out, as he hit a tree straight…

Magneto moved his hand as if he pulled in a fishing rod and made Logan fly backwards again. "That my brothers, is the way traitors are taken care of…", he said to the others. "You can come out now…" Out of the dark of the tress approached a huge man, his heavy steps reverberating from the ground.

"Wake him!", Magneto ordered Mystique who kicked Logan as long into the stomach until he was moving.

Logan groaned immediately, clenching his teeth and grimacing his face in pain as he moved. He felt his left lung filling with blood and making it nearly impossible for him to breathe, while his stomach was hard. He knew he had some seriously wounds from the inside and wondered if only one organ was still intact… He couldn't remember that he had ever felt pain like this before. Slowly, he rolled over onto his stomach and coughed heavily. He spilled blood and bile to the ground, changing the snows color…Barely breathing he looked up and his eyes widened. "No…"

Sabertooth grinned and grabbed his collar. "You're finished!", he hissed and punched him into the face.

Logan closed his eyes for a brief moment, trying desperately to fight back the darkness, but he knew he had no power left within him. Still he had to play for time. Hoping that the others would save his family…With all the strength the animal within him had left, he popped his claws…

"She's fine!", Moira said and joined the others again.

Storm and Cyclops still looked at the walls and the blood that covered them and the gound. "Where can they be?"

"Do you think he'd captured him?", Storm asked and looked at Scott.

"Dunno…"

"Anyway, we've to find him!", Charles said. "If Erik seeks revenge…" He shook his head. "I won't even imagine what he does to Logan right now…or what he did to him" He closed his eyes.

"Well, he can't kill him, can he…", Scott said dryly.

"He can…", Hank interrupted him.

"What?", Storm asked and turned around. Her heart stopped beating when she recognized the objects in his hands. "Oh no…"

Charles suddenly looked up. "It's a ploy…", he said loudly.

"Ploy?", Scott asked confused. "How?"

"The only way he could have gotten into the school were the emergency exits", the Professor explained. "Erik knows them. He wanted us to get down here, so that he could get away…"

"Then they still must be on the grounds…", Storm said barely audible and looked towards the only emergency exit on this floor.

"We've to go. Now!", Charles said and moved towards it.

"I stay here and watch over Jean!", Moira said. "And make everything ready to treat Logan…" She watched the X-Men leave. "I hope it's not to late…", she added barely audible and looked towards Jean.

He knew it was over. From the minute he'd been cured, he'd known that his life was over…

Logan laid on the ground in front of a heavy breathing Sabertooth. He had his eyes closed and was barely breathing anymore. If he ever had the slightest chance of surviving before, his opposite had taken it away from him. Sabertooth had hit him so often that the majority of his body was torn open and the blood was really flowing out of his body. Logan felt his sensed getting foggy; he knew it was over… He didn't even react when Magneto came closer. With an easy movement of his hand, Logan was kneeling in front of him. His head bent forward and his arms hanging lifelessly down. "The last thing I'll tell you before I'll finish you is that you can be sure your treacherous friends will die the same painful death!", he hissed calmly. "And that the brood of your will call me father…"

Slowly, Logan raised his head as good as he could. He couldn't let that happen… Just as he was about to say something, more blood escaped his mouth and he winced as the pain jolted through his entire body. He thought he was torn apart…

Magneto raised his other hand. "Soon, the Phoenix will rise again and this disease which calls itself homo sapiens will be wiped off this planet…" He saw the X-Men approaching.

"Erik, stop!", Charles said mentally, but it was too late…

A silent scream escaped Logan, when an iron bar rushed right through the flesh of the left side of his neck and came out under his right rib. Like a doll, he dropped to the ground…

Storm and the others watched the Brotherhood leave. Heavily breathing they stopped next to Logan who didn't move.

"No…"m Storm whispered and fell down to her knees. Her eyes saw the great amount of blood which covered the snow everywhere. Her look wandered over the torn body of her friend. She was shaking heavily, her heart nearly breaking her chest, while her head was completely empty. "Logan…?", she said and shook him slightly.

Hank and Scott turned him around so that Logan was now lying on his back. "He's still alive…", Hank said surprised after he had put a hand on Logan's throat.

Scott just stood there and watched. Unable to move or say anything. He couldn't believe that even Magneto would attack another mutant that hard…

"We have to get him inside quickly!", Charles said without being able to look away. He only saw the blood flowing out of the dozen wounds…

Storm put a hand under Logan's head and raised it. Hot tears were running down her cheeks and dripped on his face.

He grimaced a bit and opened his eyes weakly without being able to see anything. "Jean…?", he said barely audible and Ororo immediately gasped for air, stroking his hair out of his face. Her breath and heart rate were already out of control and she thought she would collapse any minute. "You have to hold out", she whispered while crying. "Think about your kids, Logan… I still want to make fun of you while you change diapers…" She sobbed heavily and clung to him. "Please…"

"'Ro…we've to get him inside…", Hank said and bent down, his eyes fixed on Logan worriedly, since he hardly breathed anymore.

She swallowed and ran a hand over Logan's cheek. She looked into his empty eyes. "Do you understand? You can't die now… I promised her that you would never leave her… So don't make me break it…" Her voice failed her and she cried even heavier. She felt him moving a bit and opened her eyes again. "Logan…?", Storm asked and stopped breathing for a minute when she felt his finger wiping away her tears barely noticeable. She smiled at him. "Softie…" Suddenly his head dropped aside and his hand fell lifelessly to the ground. Storm's eyes widened in shock and she bent forward. "No...,Logan?", she asked almost hysterically and shook him slightly.

Hank bent forward and put his hand to Logan's throat again, only to remove it slowly…

Storm watched him shaking all over while tears were flowing unstable down her cheeks. Hank looked into her eyes, a deep sadness within him. "He's gone…"

"No!", she said and shook her head violently.

He put her hands into his. "He's gone, 'Ro…"

Charles closed his eyes and shook his head, while he clenched his fists. Next to him stood Scott who just looked down on Logan's body.

"He can't!", Ororo shouted suddenly and shook her head violently, while she looked at Hank with wide eyes. "You're lying!"

Hank swallowed and pulled her into his arms. "I'm sorry…"

"No!", she yelled again and clung to him while she cried loudly. "He told me he would never leave her… I promised her that he wouldn't…", she sobbed and Hank pulled her even closer. His face mirroring the pain he felt inside. "He can't do this to her…", she cried and buried her head in his shoulder. "He promised it…."

Even from the mansion, Storm's loud heartrendingly cried could be heard…


	19. Chapter 18

**Changes Chapter 18**

They're unable to move…

Everything they could do was to stand on the same spot and look at Logan's dead body. Heavy rain poured down, called by Storm's unstoppable tears which had already soaked Hank's suit. He was still holding her shaking form, continued to stroke her back and listened to her heartbreaking pleas…

"I thought he was indestructible…", Scott said barely audible. Even he could just stare… Suddenly, he sat down and took the rod into his hands. With all his might he pulled it out of Logan's body, damaging the stabbed lung and heart even more… When he finally held it in his hands, Scott looked at it in complete disgust and threw it away. Leaving even more blood in the snow as there already was.

Charles, who had closed his eyes in grief before, opened them now, tears shining in them. "We should get him inside now…", he said to Hank who nodded.

Storm still sat in the snow, her eyes were completely empty and she still stared down on the body in front over her. "She'll hate me…"

Hank turned around since he hadn't understood what she'd said. "What?"

"She'll hate me…"

"Don't be ridiculous, 'Ro!", he said and shook his head. "It's not your fault…"

Tears were still falling down her cheeks. "She'll hate all of us… I know she will…"

Charles knew what she meant. He had thought about the same thing before. He was afraid, deeply scared that this shock would cause Jean to freak out again. And he was convinced that no one and nothing could stop her this time. With the death of Logan, she had lost her only anchor…the only one who understood the battle she fought within her day after day. If Jean woke up and heard the terrible news… Charles didn't even dare to imagine or think any further… "Well, if she'll ever wake up again…", he thought sadly. As the things were at the moment, it was very likely that they could dig two graves again after three had been closed…

"Oh my God…", Storm suddenly gasped and everyone looked at her frightened expression immediately. Her eyes were fixed on something at the mansion and she was backing off slowly.

Frowning Hank, Charles and Scott, who still kneeled on the ground next to Logan, turned their heads around and there chin dropped suddenly, too. From the mansion, a huge light approached, coming closer and closer towards them. Soon, they noticed that it wasn't just a light, but burning flames that moved towards them…Unable to move first, Scott stood up for the Professor to protect him, while Hank wanted to support Ororo.

"What is that?", Ororo asked in shock as she saw that the flames seemed to have arms and legs. "Is that Pyro?"

Charles narrowed his eyes; he'd never seen something like that before… But he sensed an immense power which this living torch radiated. He couldn't take his eyes away from it, it was just too fascinating…

They watched the body come closer, saw how it moved like flames which burned there way to its destination, while the eyes of it were glowing like bright yellow sunlight. Storm looked up, noticing that the rain had stopped. She gasped for air as the thing had almost reached them. Suddenly, her skin felt pleasantly warm. She laid a hand on her chest and frowned, while her eyes were still fixed on her opposite. Storm felt her soul aching, but not with sadness or sorrow anymore… If she had felt both very strongly before, it was now as if they'd never existed, if they're erased, completely gone, as if she'd never even experienced them…

Scott had his hands already on his visor, read to battle the thing before them. He wouldn't let another one of them die today, no matter what it would cost him…

"Scott, wait!", Charles said taking the hand of the man in front of him.

"Why?"

The Professor narrowed his eyes. "I doubt it is going to attack us…"

"How can you be so sure of it?"

"I don't know…" He only hoped that he was right…

The body came slowly closer, spreading warmth all around it, causing the snow to melt underneath it. Surprised, they watched as spring flowers sprang up out of the places the thing was walking along. The warmth consumed them, triggered emotions in them they'd never felt before or haven't felt in a very long time… They couldn't help but stare as it kneeled down besides Logan's body. They stared as they noticed the beauty of it, the Godlike expression it left in them. The dancing flames hypnotized them, left them unable to move or think, erased the horrible pictures they'd to experience before completely. All they could feel was a deep love within them, which consumed every inch of their bodies. They didn't feel the tears which were flowing down their faces, didn't feel how wounds healed, couldn't think or speak, only stare…

The flaming torch bent down to Logan. A deep sadness in its eyes as it took his numb and with blood covered head in its hands. Gently, it stroked his cheeks, his hair, kissed him and whispered things into his ears only he could understand. Storm stared at the scene before her, her chin dropped and her eyes widened. Her heart was so close to breaking, her breath out of control…. She had seen this before, months ago…and it, too, had made her cry and her emotions gone wild. She remembered Logan holding Jean's dead body close to him, how he wouldn't let go of her, the dozens _Forgive me's_ he'd whispered into her ear while crying… It seemed so familiar…yet so strange… "Jean…", she said barely audible and caused the others to turn their head's towards her. "It's Jean…"

"Jean?", Scott asked confused and looked at the not familiar person next to Logan.

Charles took a closer look. He knew that Jean's powers had no limits. She could do anything that she could imagine… But he never imagined that…

With her telekinetic powers, Jean lifted Logan's upper body up. Her head tilted to the right side as her nearly white glowing eyes looked at him curiously. It seemed as if she or the being she was right now, didn't understand hat happened to him. She paused like this for a brief moment, before black tears were running down her cheeks…

Everyone immediately backed off in the belief that she's freak out as the flames, which still covered her body, began to flicker violently. Helplessly, they watched as they gathered above her and formed the huge firebird again, which immediately spread its wings and uttered a loud cry. Jean looked up while the bird looked down on his mistress, silently communicating, before the bird took off and disappeared into the woods.

Storm tried to reach out and touch her friend in hope she would stop her from killing anyone, as suddenly the ground started to shake heavily. Within an instant it was torn open. Jean threw her head back and looked up into the sky, causing it to blacken completely…

The X-Men backed off, their eyes fixed on her. Even if they had to, they couldn't betray anyone…they're scared to death…

Phoenix's eyes were fixed on the body before her again, black tears flowing uncontrollable now. Her flaming body rose a bit when she spread her arms, causing the flames to burn even higher and stronger.

Charles and the others had to cover their eyes; the light was o strong that it nearly blinded them completely. They didn't see how Logan's body was consumed by the light and set into fire. They could only feel the ground shaking stronger and their emotions running even wilder than before, making it impossible for them to recognize what they're feeling right now.

When the light stopped blinding them, they opened their eyes slowly and gasped for air as they became totally aware of the scenery before them…

Proud like a Goddess, the Phoenix stood in all her beauty before Logan. Arms spread wide from her burning body, while she shared the light with him.

Storm took Hank's hand into hers and leant her head against his shoulder. With her mouth open she could only stare…

"Jean…", Charles said in complete disbelief as he finally understood. As if someone had opened his eyes, everything became completely clear to him now…

They watched when Logan's body began to float, saw how she discorporated his entire body until nothing more than his adamantium skeleton was left.

"What is he doing?", Ororo shrieked and wanted to stop her, but was held back by Hank.

Scott's heart was racing as he watched her continuing her work. He had never known what she was capable of before, hadn't believed Storm when she'd told him about the incidents after his death. He couldn't believe that Jean, his Jean, was capable of such terrible things… "My God…", he gasped as he saw how organs and muscled were rebuilt by her…

Phoenix had her glowing eyes still fixed on the body before her. Her heart was nearly exploding since she used all her power to fix the damages. She concentrated as hard as she could, overpowered herself completely…

The X-Men watched as the not beating heart took its old place in Logan's chest again, watched how the eyes returned to their holes, saw how the muscles first and afterwards the skin completed the picture.

"Oh my God…", they heard someone say from behind. Rogue and the younger X-Men came closer. "What is she doing to him?", she cried and her eyes widened even more when Phoenix sent an immense wave into all directions, which had nearly torn them off their feet.

"Stop her!", Rogue yelled hysterically towards the Professor, who only shook his head. "You can just sit here and let her kill him?"

"He was already dead before, Marie…", Scott explained. "Let her finish whatever she's doing…"

"He's dead? Logan's dead?", Jubilee and Kitty asked in shock, while Rogue dropped to her knees and sobbed.

Suddenly, the flames returned to Phoenix, covering her body again, consuming every inch of it, by dancing their bizarre, but beautiful dance on her skin again. She opened her eyes again. The glow within them was even stronger than before as she spread her arms again. Like a roller of fire, the flames gathered again above her, began to dance like a whirlwind, before they rushed down to earth and hit Logan straight with all their might.

The women couldn't stand to watch it anymore as silent screams left their mouths…

The men's eyes were widened in shock… All of a sudden, the air was cool again and stars had finally found their way back to heaven. A deadly silence filled the air…the ground had stopped shaking…

Unable to move, they watched Jean changing into her normal form again. For a few seconds, she just stood there, heavily breathing and trying to fill her lungs with air again. Ears were falling unstoppable and her eyes were still fixed n Logan's healed but still dead form. She began to sob heavily and trembled as she realized that she'd used up all her power. Scott instinctively jumped and caught her, when Jean collapsed and fell unconsciously to the ground…

Charles closed his eyes in sorrow, knowing that it would even be harder for her to realize that even she couldn't save him… "Let's finally get inside…", he said and woke everyone out of their shocks.

Rogue looked at him with red and wet eyes. "That's it?", she asked, the despair echoing and anger echoing in her voice. "So you gonna tell me that he's just dead and I'm supposed to accept that!"

Bobby took her in his arms and held her tight. "She tried, Marie…it was too late…"

Marie shook her head, unwilling to accept that one of her closest friends was dead. She pushed him aside while she jumped up. "I thought she's so powerful!", she cried sarcastically. "He can't just be dead…"

"He is, Marie…", the Professor assured her sadly.

"So why didn't you help him before?", she screamed hysterically, while the pain was eating her up inside. She didn't care about the tears wetting her cheeks, she didn't even feel them anymore. What she felt right now was unbearable for her. Her heart was torn out of her chest… "Why did you let him die?" Her whole body was shaking violently as the sobs became harder.

"Marie…", Bobby tried once more, but she pushed him away again.

"Let go off me!", she screamed.

Storm bent her head in grief and didn't even felt that Hank was supporting her in his arms again. She couldn't think, her mind and hearts were completely empty and her body felt numb. She starred down on Logan's body and only shook her head slowly…

"I get Peter", Kitty said to the Professor. "We can't get him inside alone…"

The Professor nodded in agreement and looked at Logan's body again. His hoped were shattered…destroyed when he finally believed that he'd found the answers to his questions…

"You're his murders!", Rogue suddenly said, causing everyone to look at her in shock.

"Rogue!", Jubilee said in disbelief and shook her head.

"You killed him by not helping him!", she yelled and turned around to run away. She couldn't stand it anymore; she couldn't be here anymore…

Abruptly, she stopped…her eyes widened in shock. She was convinced that her mind was making a fool out of her, when she heard it again… Slowly, Rogue turned around, her heart nearly breaking in her chest. She was sure that she was mistaken, when she looked down…


	20. Chapter 19

**Changes Chapter 19**

Rogue stared down and slowly got to her knees. It couldn't be true…her eyes had to make a fool out of her… But also the others suddenly stared down, the cold air reflecting their heavy breaths…

Storm let go of Hank and kneeled down. Her widened eyes switched to the Professor who stared back at her, completely speechless…

On the ground laid Logan naked on his back and heavily coughing, desperately trying to fill his lungs with air. Suddenly he turned around, breathing stertorously and retching as if his lungs had to learn to work again. His still weak arms were barely able to lift up his upper body, when he began to breathe irregularly, while his body was shaking all over. Smelling her, he slowly turned his head towards the still unconscious Jean. After taking a short look, he closed his tired eyes again, before he collapsed to the ground again.

Storm had instinctively grabbed him, but was unable to carry his weight. Shocked she looked at the others, while she rested his head in her arms, until her eyes finally met the Professor's. "That's…that's impossible… He was dead…"

Charles nodded and turned his head when Kitty and Peter approached. "Get both of them into the lab immediately!", he told Peter and Scott.

"Lab?", Peter asked confused. "But…I thought he's dead…?"

"He was…"; Charles smiled and for the first time he recognized that the flowers were gone again. So he'd been right… He finally had his answers… "We'll talk about this later", he said while maneuvering his wheelchair back to the mansion. "It was way enough excitement for this night…"

"I still don't get it, Charles", Moira said while writing down Logan's vitals. "He was cured and dead…"

Charles only smiled, but became serious again when he looked at the lifeless mutant before him. He still hadn't woken up and it had almost been a week. "I told you her powers were limitless."

She sighed and checked if there had been any changes during the week. "I know, but still…" She turned around to face him. "I don't understand how she could…", Moira broke off and looked for the right word. "…create him new…or rebuilt him…that's just impossible!"

"Erik once called her a Goddess…" The Professor's eyes darkened immediately as he thought about his old friend. He couldn't and would never forgive or forget what he'd done to Logan…

"She truly is…", she said barely audible and took care of Logan again.

"How's he doing?", he asked worriedly.

"His vitals are unchanged… I just don't know why he's not waking up." She touched Logan's arm. "He'll have a lot to do to gain weight and muscles again…"

Charles chuckled. "I doubt he'll need a lot of time for it!"

Suddenly, she looked at him and he could tell that something was on her mind. "What is it?"

"Would it have made a difference if he wasn't weekend because of his lack of sleep and food?"

"You want to know if it would have made a difference if you'd made him go to bed and sleep for a few hours and eat enough?", Charles corrected her, since he'd noticed the guilty undertone in her voice. "I doubt it. First, he wouldn't have listened to you and second, it was their intention to kill him, I think." He looked at Logan again. "No, it wouldn't have made any difference…"

She nodded. "Well, we should go. The others are waiting with breakfast for us…"

Charles maneuvered his wheelchair towards the elevator. "I only hope that Jean won't freak out after she wakes up…", he said completely serious. "She still doesn't know that he's alive…"

Upstairs on the second floor, Jean laid in bed, her eyes closed. Her body had needed the week to recover again and she had slept through it completely. She wasn't laying in the lab, since most tables were destroyed by the attack and Logan needed the medical attention more than her. Still, an IV was plugged into her arm.

As the winter sun stroked her face gently, she grimaced and opened her eyes slowly. Jean needed a moment to realize that she was laying in Logan's room… Abruptly, she widened her eyes and sat up, looking down to the empty bedside next to her. "Logan…", she gasped and began to breathe heavily as the memories returned to her.

With widened eyes and a completely shocked expression in her face she turned her head, staring into emptiness. She had failed, her powers had failed… She'd tried anything to save him, but failed… Hot tears were running down her cheeks as her breathing became harder and her eyes darkened. She had lost him because of them… Her eyes immediately turned pitch black as she saw Logan's defiled and smeared with blood body before her eyes again. A deep and violent anger took over as Jean gritted her teeth. Furious, she pulled the needle out of her arm and got up, her skin becoming veined and dark again, laving no sign of humanity on her. She wouldn't let them go away with that…they'd pay…everyone would pay for her sorrow… Suddenly, she stopped on her way to the door, as her eyes caught her expression in the large mirror on the opposite wall. Jean's eyes were fixed on her bigger belly. Slowly, she laid a hand on it… Expressionless, she looked at her mirror image, which seemed so unfamiliar and appeared so far away to her… Even if her heart was poisoned with fury and the desire to take revenge, she slowly let her head sink… Jean stood like frozen on the same spot, feeling her heart shattering to pieces as she thought about the great loss she'd to bear. When she looked into the mirror again, green eyes stared back, but still she felt empty and lost…

Slowly, as if someone else made her do it, she walked down towards the kitchen, where everyone else was gathered. Like a shadow of her former self, Jean stood in the doorway and just watched them, without really realizing it…

"Jean!", Storm said in surprise and jumped off her chair to embrace her. "You're awake!" She looked at her friend who only stared back. "Come on, sit down!" Slowly, Ororo led her to the chair, she Jean always used to sit on.

Everyone was exchanging glances, noticing the weird expression on her face. Jean slowly turned her attention to the empty chair next to her…his chair… Immediately, her eyes filled with tears again and she began to sob heavily, while her heart ached atrocious.

Storm reacted when she saw it. "Hey!" She laid a hand on her shoulder. "There's no need to cry…"

Furiously, Jean turned her head and her eyes darkened for a few seconds, while a cup smashed against the wall. "How can you say that?", she hissed angrily and jumped off her chair.

"No, let me explain…", Storm began, raising a hand to show her that she should listen to her. "What I meant was…"

"He's dead and you're telling me that there's no need to cry?", her opposite asked loudly and the tears were running down her cheeks.

"What's wrong?", Scott asked and entered the kitchen, followed by Moira and the Professor. "Jean!", he gasped and couldn't help but look at her. But she didn't even take a notice of him.

"Look…", Storm began, trying again to tell her that she got the whole point completely wrong.

"Do you have any idea what it means to me?", Jean asked in despair and shook her head. "I lost him; I lost him, because I failed!"

"Jean, you didn't…", the Professor began and was joining Ororo's side. So did the others. "Listen…"

"You told me my powers were limitless!", she cut him off. "So why couldn't I help him?"

The others were staring at her as someone laid a hand on her shoulder. Immediately Jean turned around, blinded by her fury. She gasped and backed off, her eyes widened. Her eyes stared into tired brown eyes, while she nearly dropped to the ground. "No…", she whispered. Her heart stopped beating and she was unable to move. Her whole body was shaking heavily. It appeared to her like a dream, in which she was watching herself without being able to do anything. As if she was controlled by someone else…

Suddenly, Jean felt that she was pressed against a warm body. It was supposed to calm her, but her breathe, heart and emotions were completely out of control now… Her mind refused to understand what was just happening…

"I told you…", she heard a familiar voice whispering in her ear. "I'd never leave you..."

"But you did…", Jean sobbed heavily and looked up into Logan's eyes. " "You did…"

"I'm sorry…", he said weakly and kissed her gently, while his heart broke. He hated to see her cry, especially when it was because of him.

Jean desperately clung to him and cried heavily until no more tears were left. She felt the relief, but still she couldn't believe that it was true. She had seen him, seen his body laying lifelessly on the ground…his heart had stopped beating forever and he had left her alone… She didn't car that the others were watching. Didn't see that most of them were also crying. Jean leant her head against his bare chest when he pulled her closer, listened to his steady heart beat which told her that this was for real. Slowly, she calmed down again. It soothed her down to be just close to him…

Unnoticed of her, Logan had moved both of them to the counter and leant against it. He still felt horribly weak and wasn't able to control his movements so well. "Sit down…", he told her softly and helped her up on a chair, before he, too, sat down next to her.

Jean supported her arms on the counter and rested her head in her hands, while she closed her eyes and sighed. Everything was just too much for her right now…

"Logan…"

He turned around and looked at Ororo who slowly came closer, while sobbing heavily. Quickly, she had taken him tightly in her arms and began to cry on his shoulder.

"Someone missed me, eh?", he chuckled weakly, trying to calm her, but it only made her cry harder.

"God, I thought we lost you forever…", Ororo said and looked up at him. "Don't scare me again like that, will ya?"

He wiped away her tears gently. "I'll try…"

She smiled at him and kissed him on the right cheek. She gave him a short hug, before she stepped aside to take care of Jean.

"Sorry…", the red head said and looked at her with tired eyes.

"Forget it!", Storm said and stroked her back gently.

"Good to have you back, Logan!", the Professor said smiling.

"How are you feeling?", Moira asked and stepped forward. "Honestly!"

Before he could answer, someone clung to him tightly. Surprised, Logan looked down, since he hadn't heard anyone coming. Rogue had put her arms around him and sobbed heavily. His eyes softened and he stroked her hair gently. Still, he made sure that she didn't touch his skin completely. "It's okay", he told her.

Scott leant against the fridge, arms folded and watched the scenery before him. It appeared to him that he really missed some stuff when he was gone. Still, he didn't know what to feel and looked down, when Logan's eyes met his.

Logan noticed it, but didn't take any further notice of him. "Honestly?", he grunted and turned to Moira and the Professor again, while calming Rogue. "Strange…"

"In what way?", Moira asked worriedly.

"Dunno. My body just won't listen to me and my senses are down…"

She examined his eyes and checked his pulse. "You're body need rest and you need to eat. You've been unconscious for almost a week. Your body needs to find its way back. It will take some time until you'll be back to normal. Especially without your healing factor…"

Logan frowned.

"You got cured, remember?", Ororo asked since she had noticed his confusion.

"Yeah…", he said dryly. "I know, it's just…"

"What?"

Logan gently pushed Rogue aside. "Hold on a second", he told her and she nodded. He looked around until he found what he was looking for.

"What are you doing?", Moira and Storm shrieked, while Jean looked up in surprise and looked at his bleeding hand.

Logan put the knife aside again. "See?", he asked as he wiped away the blood.

Moira took his hand and looked at it closely. "It's gone…", she said and faced Charles. "The wound has healed…"

Logan sighed. "Can somebody please explain this…?"

"We'll talk about it later, Logan!", Charles interrupted him. "The two of you really need to rest. You can barely sit straight and Jean is almost sleeping, too."

Logan turned his head around and looked into Jean's tired eyes. "He's on…"

"I'll bring you some food!", Storm said.

"Do you need help?", Rogue asked and looked at him. "I can get Bobby or Peter…"

He waved off. "Enough walls around here!" He smiled at her slightly.

"Yeah, but they won't keep you from falling…", she said worriedly.

"We'll be fine, thanks!" Logan laid an arm around Jean's waist and left with her, while Ororo began to put some food and bottles with water on a try.

Rogue sighed and leant against the counter. Her eyes still fixed on the doorway. She didn't know what to think or feel. She had been on her way to the kitchen, when she had heard his voice and immediately had started to run. "I can't believe this…", Rogue only said before she sat down on the chair on which Logan had sat before.

_This chapter is actually longer than I had pre-written it. In my first version, Rogue wasn't in the kitchen and her texts were mainly spoken by Storm. Also Scott was only mentioned once when he entered the kitchen. I changed it, because it didn't make sense otherwise. Rogue didn't re-appear in the next chapter, so it wasn't right to not let her meet Logan again after he woke up. And Scott is important for the next chapters, so I had to do something with him. LOL_

_Well, thanks for all the nice reviews so far! I'm really happy that you enjoy reading it. : ) And you didn't really believe that I would kill off Logan, did ya? ; ) Naaahh, never going to happen! At least not in the versions I have written so far. ; ) **Just a hint:** In the next chapter you might get confused, so you have to read between the lines! ; ) _


	21. Chapter 20

**Changes Chapter 20**

After two days of recovering, Logan and Jean were finally on their way back to normal. The holidays were also finally over and the school had its old routine back. While Storm, Hank and the Professor still held their classes, Logan was in the basement to gain his old form back and Jean was just having a bath.

When Logan came out of the Dangerroom with a towel around his neck and his shirt definitely showing that he'd trained, he bumped into Scott. Frustrated, he snorted and walked past the other X-Men.

"Hey!", Scott said and grabbed his wet arm to make him stop.

"What!", Logan grunted and turned around, immediately feeling how his blood started to boil.

"We've to talk."

"Do we?"

Scott sighed. "Logan, it can't go on like this…"

"Well, I'm not the troublemaker here, bub!", Logan said and wanted to walk away as Scott stopped him again.

"Do you love her?"

With an eyebrow raised, he turned around again, looking at the man in front of him in confusion. "What?"

"You understood me, Logan…", Scott said completely serious. "Do you LOVE her?"

"I doubt that I am accountable to you…", Logan grunted and narrowed his eyes.

Scott shook his head and put his hands to his hips. "It's a simple question!"

"But I don't give YOU an answer!"

"Don't… or maybe can't?", Scott shot back angrily.

"Pick one! What is it to you anyway?", Logan hissed and stepped closer.

"A lot, cause I care about her!"

Logan smirked. "And now you're pissed because you're not longer the alpha-male, eh?"

"No…", his opposite said threatening folded his arms in front of his chest. "I'm pissed that a loner like you took advantage of the situation…"

Logan nodded playfully while he chuckled and pretended that he was thinking. "I see…", he said. "So the boy's crying that he lost his girl to a man, huh?"

Scott snorted. "I really don't know what she wants with you!"

"Same thing I always asked myself about you", Logan shot back, fighting his desire to bury his claws in him. "Maybe you just weren't good enough for her…"

Scott smirked. "I watched you in the Dangerroom, Logan…", he aid and looked as arrogantly into the face of his opposite as he was staring back. "Has she every met the real you?"

"Wanna meet him?", Logan grunted, while losing his temper with the boy.

"No thanks!", Scott waved off. "I've already seen the animal in you…"

"Then better hope you won't see it again!", Logan hissed and moved away towards the elevators. He fought hard against the beast within who wanted to smash the boy into pieces…

"Does she love you, by the way?", Scott called after him, when he waited for the doors to open. Logan turned around and shot a deadly look at him, nevertheless, he had found a way to hit him… "You're not someone to raise kids, Logan… If you get bored of her you drop her, no matter what…", Scott shot angrily at him.

His opposite smirked and tried to stay calm from the outside. Despite this, his inner parts were boiling like hellfire. Finally, the elevator doors opened and Logan stepped in. Still facing Scott and shooting cold looks at him. "Come over it, boy!", he hissed.

"You were an animal then and you're an animal now. People like you never change…", Scott said barely audible, but still Logan understood every single word. With clenched fists he watched the doors closing, before he hit the wall with all his strength.

Jean turned around as she heard the door open. She smiled happily and watched Logan close the door again. "Already back? I thought you'd be gone until dinner." She stepped forward and wanted to kiss him, but he pushed her aside. Confused, Jean frowned and looked at him completely speechlessly. "What's wrong?"

He shrugged. "Nothing…"

Still puzzles, she looked into his cold and distant eyes. She new something was wrong. He was somehow different… But still she couldn't tell what might have caused the change… "Logan, what happened?", Jean asked again and folded her arms in front of her chest.

Logan tilted his head from one side to the other. "I'm just getting tired…"

"Of what?"

He shot a look at her and made his way to the bathroom. "Of you…"

Shocked, Jean lowered her arms and stared at him with a complete blank expression, while her heart was racing in her chest. "W…what?", she asked confused and thought that she hasn't understood him correctly.

"Just pack your things, okay?", Logan said and stepped into the bathroom. "I'll shower and when I come out, you're gone. Got that?", he asked coldly and closed the door behind him.

Jean had her eyes fixed on the door. She was unable to move or to think. Her heart was beating strongly in her chest, so strong in shock that she thought it would explode any second…

Slowly, she stepped backwards until her back touched the wall. Her eyes sank to the ground, when she slipped to the ground. Her mind still couldn't understand what her ears had just heard… Jean didn't even see hoe the door on her right opened.

"Hey…", Storm said softly. "Why are you sitting on…", she broke off when she saw the confused and shocked expression on her friend's face. "What happened!"

Jean looked up, barely able to see anything because of the hot tears that were unstoppable running down her cheeks. Heavily breathing she jumped up and ran sobbing out of the room.

Confused, Storm looked towards the door and frowned.

"Hey…"

"What happened?", Storm asked as Logan stepped closer with his eyes fixed on her.

"Nothing…"

"Nothing!", Ororo asked eying him skeptically and put her hands to her hips.

He closed the door and stopped in front of her, only with a towel covering his hips. "Yeah…"

"That's why Jean stormed out of the room…? Because of _nothing_!", she asked again, emphasizing each part.

He only shrugged. "Well, she decided to go back to Scooterboy, so I threw her out…"

Storm was aware of the fact that his eyes were scanning her body. "She did what?" She frowned. It couldn't be true… Jean would never do this…

"New dress?", Logan asked, changing the subject and smirking, while he looked at her closely.

"Uh,…yeah…", she gave back in confusion, feeling her heart racing. Something made her feel very uncomfortable just now. "Why did she go back to Scott? I mean,…that's not like her…"

"Whatever…", he said, pining her more and more to the wall.

"Logan…", Storm said confused and backed off. "Are you alright?"

"Never better!", he said in his husky voice, which immediately made her shiver.

"Stop it!", she demanded and put her hands in his naked chest to push him away.

He smirked and bent forward until she could feel his breath on her neck. "Make me…"

Storm breathed in sharply when he pushed her against the wall and licked the sensitive spot on her neck again. One hand had grabbed her right leg, while he pushed his loin against hers. She gasped for air again, closing her eyes for a brief moment as the heat within her took over. "Logan…", she barely managed to say and laid her hands on his chest again, while he pulled up her skirt. "Stop it!" Breathlessly, she looked up into his foggy eyes. "What's wrong with you!", Ororo asked after a few moments, desperately trying to calm her racing heart.

He sighed. "You're no fun, you know that?"

"Fun!", she asked and put her hands to her hips. "Logan,…I thought you loved her? That are your kids she's carrying…"

"Who cares?", Logan gave back shrugging. "She wanted to go back to him, fine with me…" He tilted his head and watched her again. "And besides…", he said and stepped closer again, causing her to stop breathing. "…I know you liked it…"

Scott looked up when he heard the doors to the garden open. He saw Jean running down the stairs towards the pond and stopping there breathlessly. He immediately sensed that something was wrong, when she collapsed to the ground. In an instant, he was at her side. "Jean?", Scott asked and kneeled down beside her. "What happened?"

Jean breathed irregularly, while tears were still running down her cheeks. Without thinking, she clung to him and sobbed.

Scott pulled her close and suddenly he seemed to know who caused this mess. "What did he do?", he asked angrily.

Storm still tried to calm her racing heart when he let go of her. Her head rested against the wall while he breathed heavily, her eyes closed. Logan didn't take any further notice of her. Confused, Ororo opened her eyes, watching him when he got dressed. "What now?", she asked and waited for an answer.

"What now?", he asked in return and raised an eyebrow.

"I mean…", she began ad he chuckled.

"What did you think? That we built a house and live happily ever after?", he asked and shook his head smirking, while heading towards the door. "I was bored, that's all…", he said before he left.

Ororo swallowed and looked at the door with tears in her eyes, while she breathed hard because of her upcoming anger. Her mind still couldn't realize or believe what just happened, nor how she let it happen… She took a deep breath and looked around to calm herself again. She couldn't believe that she had been so wrong in her judgment about him… It ached her a lot to know that he used her to get over his boredom for a few minute. She couldn't even tell why she had let it come so far…

"_All X-Men, please come to my office immediately!"_, echoed the voice of the Professor through the entire mansion.

Again, Storm breathed loudly, before she smoothed out her clothe and wiped away her tears. Then, she, too, left the room and headed downstairs…


	22. Chapter 21

**Changes Chapter 21**

Logan already stood in a corner of the office, when Storm arrived. He watched her taking a seat in front of the large table, ignoring him completely and looking rather pissed. Again the door opened and Rogue, Kitty, Peter and Bobby entered, followed by Jean and Scott. Frowning, Logan watched when Scott immediately made his way towards him. Before he could react, he felt Scott's fist hitting his chin hard and then he was pushed against the wall. "You're a damn asshole, Logan, Cyclops said furiously and grabbed is collar.

"Boy, I warn you..", Logan hissed and grabbed the shirt of his opposite.

"Of what? That you punch me? Do it, Logan, because I swear to God, if you ever get close to her again, I'll kill you!", Scott yelled.

"What's wrong?", they heard the Professor ask, when he, too, entered the office.

Logan let go off Scott, but didn't guessed that this one pushed him against the wall again. "Okay, that's it!", Logan grunted. Quickly, he had pinned his opposite to the wall and popped his claws, the right and left one touching the wall, while the middle one stopped right before Scott's throat.

"Logan!", Charles warned him. "Can someone please explain what is going in here?" He looked around, noticing the wet cheeks and eyes of Jean and the cold, but hurt expression of Ororo. The younger X-Kids only shrugged, they, too, had watched the whole scenery in confusion. Logan dropped Scott to the ground and retracted his claws again. "Ask him!", he grunted and shoot deadly looks at the man on the ground who gritted his teeth in return.

"I'm asking you!", Charles said in return, sensing that the problem were centered around him and came closer. "What the hell is going on here, Logan?"

"Dunno!", the mutant shrugged, looking at Jean who tried her best to ignore him. Scott and Ororo snorted despicable.

"You're such an asshole…", the white haired woman said and shot deadly looks at him.

"Am I?", Logan asked in return and leant against the table, his arms folded.

"Dies it surprise you?", Scott asked suppressing his desire to shot one of his beams at him. "I always warned her about you!"

Logan snorted. "Yeah,…I know…_I was an animal then, I'm an animal now, people like me never change…"_, he cited Scott and shook his head.

"You are!", Ororo said darkly.

Charles sighed. "Would the four of you please wait outside?", he asked the kids, who nodded and left. He waited until the door was closed again. "And now we talk!" He moved behind his table, looking at everyone of them. "Jean, what happened?", Charles asked softly, knowing that she tried to avoid his eyes. She only looked up and shook her head. It was too painful for her. Logan watched her frowning… "Ororo?"

The woman in front of him met his eyes. Anger and disappointment mirrored on her face, but also pain. "Ask him!", she said and nodded towards Logan.

"Logan?", Charles said and turned his head towards the mutant who now stood in the corner again, one foot rested against the wall while his arms were folded in front of his chest. "As I said… Dunno!"

"Bastard!", Scott said and shook his head.

"Watch it, bub!"

"No, you better watch it!"

"Okay, Scott, please explain!", Charles said stressed and sensed the immense heat of anger in this room growing steadily. Still he didn't dare to read Jean's mind. By even looking at her, he knew that she was in pain, deep pain… It hurt him to see her like that…

"He threw Jean out of his room, telling her that he got tired of her and that she's pack her things", Scott explained, still shooting deadly looks at Logan, who had raised an eyebrow and frowned. "I knew this would happen… I even wondered how an animal like you could stay with her for over a year…"

Before Logan could answer, Ororo jumped out of her chair. "I don't believe it!", she yelled. "You said she left you and wanted to return to Scott!" Her eyes shimmered white for a brief moment and the sky darkened immediately.

"Wait a second…", Logan interrupted her, but she had already hit his cheek.

"You're such a bastard, Logan! Was it not enough to hurt her? Did you still have to use me?"

"Use you!", he asked and narrowed his eyes, while holding his cheek, aware that Jean had looked up and watched him. "Are you drunk?"

"What else would you call it if you sleep with a girl and throw her away like trash!", she yelled at him, before she could stop herself.

Everyone turned their hands and looked at Logan in shock, while he only looked at Jean with widened eyes. She stared at him, while she breathed heavily and shook her head slowly. Shock and immense pain were mirrored on her face. She bit her lip and grimaced as tears began to run down her cheeks. She shook her head again and ran out of the room, sobbing loudly. Logan just looked at the door. Charles came closer and he could tell that he was furious. "Pack your things and leave!"

"What!", Logan asked in confusion and stared down at him.

"You heard me, Logan! Go!"

He looked at him and the others completely expressionless. Even if his mind had understood the order, he couldn't move. Everything just seemed so ridiculous to him… "Wait a second…", he said while something hit him.

"No! Piss off!", Scott said and pushed him towards the door.

"Wait!", Logan grunted and saw the X-Kids looking into the room curiously. "So I threw Jean out of the room and afterwards we had sex?", he asked Storm and put his hands to his hips.

She walked up to him slowly, her eyes shining white while a thunderstorm was echoing from the outside. "Stop making fun of me, Logan!", she said warningly. Rogue frowned and looked at Bobby, who returned her look.

"Logan, I don't want to repeat myself!", Charles said coldly. "You're not longer welcome here! I can't believe that I have been so wrong…"

Rogue stepped forward. "Wait, he…"

"Stop it, Marie!", Scott said.

"But, he…", she tried again, coming closer.

"I said stop it!", he said harshly. "Logan, just go!"

"Damn it, don't you see it?", Logan asked. Suddenly, he felt frightened and moved towards the door. "Where's that bitch?"

Scott grabbed him by the collar again. "Don't you EVER call Jean like that again!"

Logan pushed him aside roughly. "Not Jean, damn it!", he said and moved to the door again. "Mystique…", he grunted.

Upstairs, Jean sat in her former room crying. She couldn't believe it. The pain was eating her up from the inside. She couldn't understand what had changed him so much…if she did something wrong… Sobbing, she began to pack her things together. Jean had always thought that he was someone to keep his promises… He had sworn that he would never leave her… The night before, after their bodies had finally recovered enough, he'd been so gentle during their lovemaking, had let her control it, since he was afraid to hurt her or the babies…

Again, she sobbed heavily. Today, her whole life had been shattered to pieces… She couldn't bear to stay at the school anymore, with everything reminding her of him and their time together…She heard the door open behind her.

"Jean!"

Jean winced by the sound of his voice. "Go away…", she said barely audible.

He grabbed her and turned her around. "No!"

"Damn it, Logan, let go off me!" She pushed him away and turned around again. She wouldn't give him the joy to see the pain she had to endure. She didn't want to see him smirking at her…

Suddenly, Jean froze as she heard the familiar sound of popped claws…


	23. Chapter 22

**Changes Chapter 22**

Logan ran upstairs towards his room, following the scent. He only hoped that he would find her… He opened the door just in time to see himself popping claws. With a primal cry he grabbed his doppelganger and smashed him into the wall, while he himself took position in front of Jean, extracting his claws to protect her. "You alright?", Logan asked her while keeping his eyes fixed on his opposite, who slowly got up to his feet again.

Jean breathed irregularly, looking at the scenery in shock, as her world fell apart for the second time today… Confused, her eyes went to and fro between the two of them.

"Jeannie, are you alright?", he asked again, but turned his head this time to look at her. She slowly nodded and sobbed, feeling relieved but deeply shocked at once. Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Look out!"

Quickly, Logan turned, but still he wasn't fast enough. The claws of his doppelganger plunged deep into his abdomen, causing him to groan and grimace in pain. Mystique was about to use the other faked claw, too, when he growled and grabbed her throat. Immediately, the doppelganger retracted the claws and took hold of Logan's hands, trying to get rid off him. With an easy movement of her right leg, she kicked him hard into the balls and he let go. He took a deep breath to ease the pain and narrowed his eyes. "'Kay…", he grunted and gritted his teeth furiously. "Now, I'm really pissed…"

Jean watched everything with widened eyes. She watched Logan jumping at his opposite, his claws pointing at his opposite and while he beat at her angrily. Quick as Mystique was, even if she copied Logan's body right now, she easily got out of the way and evaded his attacks with a wide grin on her faces. Jean couldn't believe it… She couldn't believe that she had fallen for her trick so easily… That she had truly believed it was Logan who had hurt her so much… Her hand covered her mouth as she saw him fighting for her and she grimaced in pain, while tears covered her cheeks. She wouldn't even imagine how much she had hurt him with her lack of trust… Suddenly, Mystique changed her appearance again.

"Shit…", Logan cursed and stepped back to put himself between Jean and Deathstrike again. Desperately he searched for a solution and asked himself where Scott and Ororo were… As Deathstrike, Mystique was even more difficult to handle and also far more dangerous… He had to get Jean out of here… He knew she was still scared to use her powers in a battle…but right now she also was too shocked to be of help… Retracting his claws on his left hand, Logan blindly searched for her hand behind his back, his eyes fixed on his enemy who only smiley at him devilishly. If he only was quick enough…he could get Jean to the door if he… He watched her nails growing. She knew what he was up to…

"Damn it!", Logan cursed and popped his claws again.

Jean's heart was racing. Heavily breathing and unable to think properly, she shrieked as Deathstrike jumped at her. Logan reacted immediately and grabbed her in the air. While she buried her claws into his back, he groaned shortly, before he smashed her with all his might into the wardrobe, destroying it with this action completely. Quickly, he pinned her to the ground and turned his head towards Jean, while Deathstrike rammed her nails into his shoulder. He breathed in sharply, easing the pain and looked up at her again. "Go!", he yelled at Jean who still stood in the corner and watched him with shocked eyes. "Damn it, go!" She nodded and ran down the corridor where she nearly bumped into Scott and Ororo, who were accompanied by all X-Men.

"There you are!", Scott said breathlessly and took her arm. "Where is…" He was cut off by a loud smash and turned around, just to see Logan crash into the wall opposite of his room door. Plaster crumbling from it… For a second he just laid there, holding his wounded ad dislocated left shoulder while breathing heavily. Heavy footsteps echoed next to him, causing the ground to shake. Slowly, Logan raised his head, his eyes narrowing, while his wound on the head disappeared, leaving only a small trace of blood, which dropped to the floor.

"What's that for a thing?", Scott asked and looked at the giant mutant with the strange helmet, who came out of the large hole in wall, which belonged to Logan's room. He had never seen such a strange mutant…

"Juggernaut…", Storm said and watched Logan closely, knowing what he would do next by the look of his eyes. "Guys, step back! Even if he's faked, he can still injure us seriously!" The younger X-Man obeyed and backed off, taking position behind the grown-ups.

Slowly, Logan got up his eyes fixed on his opposite, holding his left shoulder a bit lower than the right. "That's it…", he grunted and got into position to attack him. His claws were stretched out before his body, protecting himself, while threatening his enemy on the same time. He breathed heavily and let his fury overwhelm him…

Jean watched him closely, saw his eyes changing into something she'd never seen before… They changed from angry into cold and merciless, she watched him gritting his teeth and growling like a wolf, while his eyes narrowed and darkened… She'd never seen him like this…but she knew instantly that it was no longer Logan down the corridor… She gasped when she recognized the expression in his eyes…it were the eyes of a cold blood killer…

"He's going berserk…", Ororo said and pushed the younger mutants even more behind her, while she backed off anxiously. "Watch out! Don't make a move or he attacks us!"

Scott turned towards Jean, taking her arm to pull her behind him. He saw the frightened expression in her face. "Now you finally see what he is…", he said completely seriously. She turned her head to face him. "Now you meet HIS animal…" He looked at the fight again…

Iceman began to breathe heavily. "What's wrong?", Shadowcat asked him and looked at him worriedly.

"You've never seen him doing this?", he asked.

"Doing what?"

"Wolverine,…you've never seen him going berserk?"

"No…"

"You'll understand afterwards…", he said and looked at Wolverine. He was scared… The memories of the attack on the mansion returned to him immediately. He saw all the dead soldiers and the blood again, which had covered the floor and walls nearly everywhere… Iceman closed his eyes when he remembered the primal scream of Wolverine again, as he'd jumped down and killed those soldiers right in front of him in cold blood. He'd wished he would never see it again… Suddenly, Iceman realized that he did not only recalled the primal scream within his head, which had been more animal than human,…he actually heard it just now…

Wolverine led out a scream, which went right through everyone, and jumped, claws first at the faked Sabertooth. This one on the contrary, hissed and attacked his opposite, too. Fists and claws crashed against both bodies, while growls and groans could be heard in between. Both mutants used all tricks they had in there furious and blinding rage… They were punching each other, biting, hissing while they kept on ramming their claws in the body of the current enemy… Wolverine drowned more and more into his berserk form, forgetting his environment completely, he pushed memories in the furthest corner of his head,…all he wanted was to kill the mutant in front of him… He tried to bury his claws into his opposite again, but reacted to slow, when Sabertooth tore open the skin in his face. Still, furious as he was, Wolverine didn't react to the blood, which dropped to the floor immediately or the pain it caused…he didn't even feel it…

"No!", Jean gasped and stepped forward, wanting to help him, but Scott held her back. "Don't intervene or he attacks us, too. He can handle himself…" She stopped a few meters away from the others and kept on watching…

Screaming in rage, Wolverine carried out a triple punch, with his claws, while the sweat ran down his body and mixed with the blood. He left a deep wound on the right leg, which made Mystique yell in pain and change into her normal form again. She back off, limping and bit her lip, while her wound started to bleed heavily. Immediately, she was attacked by him again and this time she was too slow. He grabbed her and threw her against the wall, leaving a large crack in it, while she fell unconscious to the ground right in the middle between Jean and him…

Wolverine breathed heavily and scanned the area for more enemies. His eyes were still cold and merciless, right now he was completely consumed by his alter ego and this one was out for blood. Even if Mystique was eliminated for the moment, the others didn't dare to move. They watched his him frightened as his eyes stopped on them. Scared, they stepped back,…everyone, except Jean. Slowly, but still concentrating on the surrounding, Wolverine came closer. Immediately, the X-Men backed off even more, being scared to death by the look of his eyes. Scot instinctively tried to grab Jean's hand, wanted to pull her away from the berserker, but she just stood there, heavily breathing and her eyes fixed on the growling Wolverine…

"Jean…", Scott said anxiously. "Get away from him! He doesn't know who you are…" He watched her stepping forward. "No! Don't do this! He's unpredictable in that state!"

Rogue remembered the look of Wolverine's eyes. She still saw him landing in front of her after he'd jumped off the balcony, killing those soldiers in hi merciless rage. She remembered how he'd looked at her…remembered that the animal in him hadn't recognized them at first. Bobby had been so scared of him that he'd thought Wolverine would kill them, too… Rogue had to admit that she'd thought the same…until she'd seen how Logan had fought his way back to the surface… Still, she wondered if he recognized Jean…

"Jean!", Storm said as she watched her stepping closer and closer. She, too, was scared to death right now…she heard him growling threatening… "Jean, stop!"

Jean curiously looked at him. For her, it was completely new to see him like that. She watched Wolverine taking position and gritting his teeth, while he uttered another growl. His cold eyes scanned her, when she walked past the still unconscious Mystique. Jean wondered what he was thinking jus now, if he was only running on primal instincts…what he saw in her… His eyes moved and she stopped when he tensed his muscles… Suddenly he started to run at her growling and jumped at her with clenched fists. Her eyes widened…

"No!", Scott and Ororo yelled at the same time and stepped forwards when they saw it.

Jean shrieked as someone wrapped her arms around her neck and pushed her aside, while Wolverine's claws hammered into the ground where Mystique had laid before and he growled in anger again. He turned his head towards his blue enemy and narrowed his eyes…

Jean felt how she was pushed against a hard body, immediately recognizing it as Logan's. Barely breathing in shock, she clung to the strong arm, which pulled her head back, while she heard the familiar sound of extracting claws…

"No!", Cyclops and Storm yelled at once and jumped forward to intervene.

"If anyone moves, she's dead!" With the claws on her throat, Jean was pulled backwards. She heard the real Wolverine's angry growl and looked at him with scared eyes. He was watching his doppelganger closely, ready to strike and rip him apart…

"Let her go!", he grunted threatening and stepped forward.

"I'll kill her!"

"You won't make it!"

"Really?", Logan hissed and pushed the claws closer to Jean's throat. She winced as it cut into her flesh.

While Wolverine watched the small trace of blood running down her throat, his rage became even stronger. All he wanted was to kill his doppelganger, nothing and no one else mattered to him right now… His eyes met Jean's who looked at him in despair. He only returned her look with cold eyes, before he lowered his glance to her abdomen…

"Damn it, Wolverine, do as she says!", Scott yelled at him, since he'd noticed that the man in front of him only cared for his revenge right now. He on the contrary couldn't let it happen…

It hit Wolverine… He felt his heart rate kicking into high gear even more than before. Felt it beating in every inch of his body, when he finally looked up into her face again, suddenly recognizing it completely. His heart rate began to slow down a bit, when fear took over and he blinked. Jean had watched him closely. She noticed the change in him immediately and saw the cold within his eyes being replaced by fear. Logan retracted his claws and stepped back. "I swear to God, if you hurt them…", he hissed, his eyes fixed on his doppelganger who only smirked at him arrogantly.

"What then? The last time we met you're pretty dead afterwards, remember?"

"I'll show you dead if you're not letting her go now!", he growled back and clenched his fists again.

"Try it!", his opposite hissed in return and pulled her closer.

Jean groaned and closed her eyes as the claws cut deeper.

"Let her go, damn it!", Logan yelled and stepped forward again.

His doppelganger just smiled, completely aware of the other X-Men who had already taken position. "Save your energies for later! You'll need them soon!" He pulled Jean with him, feeling her breathing irregularly in fear.

The real Logan saw her tears and felt completely lost. He didn't know what to do… Everything his mind came up with ended with her death…

"You! Stay where you are!", his doppelganger said to Scott who wanted to attack, but froze immediately.

"Damn it!", he cursed and took his hand from his visor again.

Logan finally stepped forward and raised a hand to get Mystique's attention again. "Take me!" Jean's eyes shot open and the orange shimmer within them disappeared, as she heard him saying it.

"What!", Mystique asked in confusion.

"Take me and let her go!", he said again.

"I don't want you!", his doppelganger shot back. "It's her I want!"

"But he wants me, doesn't he?", Logan said. "He wants his revenge… So take me!"

"Logan…", Ororo said, her eyes wide in shock. Even Scott looked at him frowning

"Why? You liked what we did to you the last time?"

"No!", Jean suddenly cried and struggled as the pictures of his dead body reappeared in front of her eyes.

"I won't attack you", Logan said calmly again, stepping closer. "I'll come with you and he can do whatever he wants with me… But, please, let her go…!"

"No!", Jean said again and shook her head in despair. She looked at him with wide and pleading eyes, while tears were running down her face. Her heart raced in her chest, she couldn't bear to lose him again. "Please,…no!"

"Why should I trust you?", Mystique asked suspiciously, still holding the Jean tight.

"You know why!", he shot back.

His doppelganger eyes him suspiciously and thought about her order she'd been given…

Logan exchanged glances with Jean. Both looked at each other until she blinked. "So, what now?", he asked and his doppelganger looked at him distrustful. Logan returned the look she gave him.

"I want them to step aside, she finally hissed.

"Do it!", Logan said towards the others.

"What!", Scott asked and also Storm looked at him in confusion. "Are you nuts? You can't let her…"

"Step aside!", Logan growled and pointed his claws at them. "Or I'll make you!"

"Scott…", Jean barely audible said. "…just do it…"

"But, Jean…"

"Please…", she begged. "I don't want you to get hurt…"

For a brief moment, he froze and just stared into her pleading eyes. "Okay…" He stretched out his arms and ordered the others to step back to the wall.

After the path was cleared, Mystique nodded towards Logan. "You arms…I want to see them!"

Grunting he raised his arms above his head and shot deadly looked at his doppelganger. Jean had watched him. She had to breathe hard in order to control her inner turmoil… She was scared to death and her heart kicked into high gear, when she was pushed aside. Mystique quickly grabbed Logan and pointed her faked claws to his throat. "Move and even you can't fix it…", she hissed. Logan only looked annoyed and raised an eyebrow. His eyes met Jean's. She stood stock still on the same spot, breathing irregularly. He noticed that she was scared to death. Saw the fear in her eyes. He nodded when Mystique pushed him forward, watching the others closely. She dragged him down the corridor, the claws cutting into his throat, while he felt her other fist at his back, pointing to his heart.

"You just signed your death sentence, you know that?", he asked her and immediately felt her deepen the cut.

"Wrong,…you just signed yours… You'll die an even more miserable death than the last time…"

He snorted. "I doubt that…", he shot back, his heart racing while he waited,…He heard her and began to smirk…

"Do something!", Rogue yelled. "He's gonna kill him…" She looked at the grown-ups pleadingly. "Please!"

Suddenly, they heard a painful yell and looked down the corridor in shock…

**Thanks for all your nice reviews! You're really supporting me a lot: ) I can't believe that it is already Chapter 22 and over 100 pages. I never intended to write so much. LOL I changed this chapter a bit. Originally, Wolverine cut into Mystique's leg and pinned her to the ground. Just as he wanted to finish her, she changed into Nightcrawler and disappeared. I forgot that she can't do that. So, instead of making her reappear behind Jean, I rewrote that part. I wrote chapters 23 and 24 yesterday. I only have to type them up. : ) So, thanks for all your support! Hope you enjoyed this one here, too. **


	24. Chapter 23

**Author's note: **"Wolves mate for life" was taken from Janetdu's fanfic "I could be the good guy-A JeanLogan journey". Thanks again Janet that you allowed me to cite it! You guys should read that fanfic of hers it's great!

**Changes Chapter 23**

Mystique grimaced and held her head, her body transforming into hundreds of different mutants and humans. Logan reacted immediately and grabbed her roughly, smashing her against the wall, while he popped his claws again. He gritted his teeth and growled threatening, before he buried them deep into her abdomen and watched her yelling in pain, while she stared at him with in shock widened eyes. His eyes were merciless again. He beast within him enjoyed watching her…

Mystique breathed stertorously and closed her eyes while grimacing again, before she sank to her knees. Logan grabbed her and pulled her up again, his hands holding her throat tightly. "Ever heard about a psychic link?" He loosened his grip and watched as an invisible force smashed her into the wall again. Mystique fell unconscious to the ground, her wounds bleeding heavily.

Scott and the others turned around frowning and gasped. Jean stood proud and strong in the middle of the corridor, her eyes shining orange and red, while a corona of fire covered her body. She had her eyes still fixed on the wounded blue mutant on the ground. Suddenly, she blinked and shook her head slightly. The light disappeared… Finally, her eyes met Logan's again. "It worked…", Jean said calmly.

"Told you so…", he answered and broke eye contact.

She immediately saw his eyes changing… She knew what he was thinking about right now and suddenly she felt bad,…very bad… "Logan, I…"

"Take her to the basement!", Logan cut her off and looked at Beast and Cyclops. "And make sure she stays there!", he added angrily.

"Are you alright?", Jean heard a familiar voice next to her. She turned her head for a very brief moment to look at Storm. "Yeah…", she said dryly and looked away again.

Storm only nodded and looked down, feeling embarrassed. "Okay…" Slowly and not daring to look at Logan, she stepped aside. "Go back to your rooms! We'll meet later again and discuss how we'll proceed", she told the younger X-Men who nodded and disappeared.

"You okay?" Rogue stopped next to Logan, sensing his inner turmoil.

"Yeah…", he answered, still shooting deadly looks at Jean and Storm.

"I wanted to tell them that you were with us the whole time after your left the Dangerroom…", she told him, since she still felt bad about how they treated him. "I'm sorry…"

Logan gave her a look. "YOU don't have to be… Now go and get some rest!"

She nodded and squeezed his hand. "See ya later!"

Storm followed her, wondering if she could ever look at them again without feeling deeply ashamed…

While Mystique was carried away by Scott and Hank, Jean still stood on the same spot, aware of the fact that Logan was looking at her. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so bad… She cursed herself and couldn't believe that she'd fallen for the masquerade… Jean didn't even dare to imagine how much she must have hurt him, by believing that he was capable of such things… Slowly, she looked up at him, meeting his reserved eyes. Yeah, she could tell by the way her looked at her that he was deeply offended… "I'm sorry…", Jean said barely audible and shook her head slowly.

"You alright?"

"Yeah…"

"Good!" Logan walked towards the only empty room, Jean's old room, and opened the door. "Come in!", he said and tilted his head quickly to show her that he wanted her to come to him.

Slowly and with her heart kicking into high gear, Jean obeyed and walked up to him. After she'd entered, she heard him closing the door. Still, she didn't turn around to face him. She fixed her eyes on the floor and swallowed.

Logan didn't say anything either. He only folded his arms in front of his chest. He wasn't angry with her…it was far worse. She'd absolutely betrayed his trust and he was deeply disappointed in her… "How could you believe her, Jean?", Logan finally asked, his voice barely audible.

Jean slowly turned around. "I'm sorry…" She shook her head again and looked down.

He snorted and also shook his head, while biting his lips. "I don't get it…", he said and looked at her. "I really don't get it…"

"Logan…", Jean began and stepped forward, but he backed off. Despair was mirrored on her face.

"Do you trust me that _much_, Jean?", he asked calmly and she immediately felt her eyes getting wet. "Do you really believe I could do this to you…?"

"How should I've known that it was a ploy?", she asked in return and looked him directly into his distant eyes.

"By thinking!", he shot back harshly.

Offended, she looked down. "I don't have your senses, Logan… I only saw you standing in front of me and telling me to leave…" Jean said calmly, despite her inner turmoil.

"That's the point!", he said.

"What?"

"You _saw_!", he answered.

"What else should I've done?", she asked in despair.

"Thinking!", Logan grunted. "Jean, what do you think of me? Honestly?", he asked and snorted. "Do you really believe that I kill you to save you, endure the pain and nightmares it caused, support you after you came back and let Magneto kill me to play for time, so that the others can protect you? And just for what!", he asked angrily and louder, while staring at her. "To get you in my bed? To annoy Scott?" He shook his head in disbelief. "If my only interest in you was to fuck you, I would have done it in the lab the first day we met and that's it! Do you really think I would have cared about you or the school if that was my aim! That's the way I was, Jean! That's the way I treated woman before I met you! So how could you believe this crap? Do you honestly believe that I would leave you? Especially, when you're pregnant with _our _kids!" He had to break eye contact. He became too furious about it…

"I'm sorry…really, Logan I am…", Jean sobbed and looked at him pleadingly. "But I only heard you say those things…and it hurt so damn much… I couldn't think any further…"

He leant against the wall. "You also believed the story with Storm…" Logan saw how much she suffered, how sorry she was and that she meant it…, but part of him, the part that still felt the pain and disappointment because of her lack of trust, couldn't forgive her so easily… He recalled Scott's words in the basement when he'd came out of the Dangerroom. He really asked himself if her ex was right…

Jean sobbed again and had wrapped her arms around her body. She couldn't bear the look he gave her anymore… "What do you feel for me, Jean?", she heard him ask and looked up at him frowning. "You know that…"

Logan shook his head. "I told you back then…, but you never told me…" He waited for her answer, buts he only stared at him. He chuckled in disappointment. "Is sleeping with me your way of saying thank you for saving you on Alcatraz?", he asked sarcastically. "Or do you stay with me, because I'm the only one who can kill you if you have one of your really bad days?"

Jean's heart nearly broke in her chest. She couldn't believe that he thought about her like that just now… Everything between the two of them went suddenly completely wrong… "How can you say that…?", she asked in shock.

"Then tell me!", Logan demanded calmly and put his hands to his hips. She could only stare at him in disbelief, while tears were still running down her cheeks. "Fine…", he hissed and turned around to open the door. Just as he had his hand on the doorknob, Jean wrapped her arms around him from behind and leant her head against his back. He looked down, hoping she would say the words he wanted to hear from her so desperately…

"How can you say that, Logan?", Jean only asked. "I know that I hurt you, but how can you question my feelings for you?"

Logan pushed her arms away a bit. "How?", he asked angrily and turned around to face her. "First, the fur ball has to tell me that I am going to be a father, because you thought I would be the asshole everyone thinks I am and would leave you alone. And you can't tell me you didn't know about you being pregnant before, Jean! You're a doctor! Then I caught you kissing Scooterboy twice and at the very end you believe the crap Mystique told you… What comes next?", he asked bitterly. "Did I have an affair with Rogue and she's carrying my child, too? Why can't you just trust me, Jean? Why!"

She looked at him while sobbing heavily and bit her lip. "I do trust you…"

"Really? Well, I didn't noticed a thing…", he shot back sarcastically, while his heart ached. "I would have wanted you to tell me that…", he added more calmly and nodded towards her belly.

"What did you expect me to do?", Jean asked in pain. "It was _you_ who said that he doesn't want to have children…"

"I was angry, Jean!"

She snorted. "I thought you always mean what you say…!"

He sighed. "In that particular moment, I didn't!"

"Then why did you say it?", Jean asked not understanding him. "Why?", her voice was barely a whisper.

"Because…", he began but broke off. He hated to talk about his own feelings.

"Because?"

"Because I'm scared!", Logan finally said and sighed again. He shook his head and looked down, running a hand through his hair.

"Why?", she asked in confusion.

He snorted. "Come on, Jean! Me and kids…"

"So you're not happy…, she asked sadly, being afraid of his answer.

"Of course I am…"

"Then what are you afraid of?", Jean asked calmly and noticed that he felt uncomfortable in this situation.

Logan didn't look at her. He hated admitting his fears. Nevertheless, she deserved to know it. "To fail…", he finally said barely audible.

Gently, Jean laid a hand on his cheek. Being touched by his admission, she was also surprised that, despite his rough and self assured outer appearance and behavior he was scared of something so naturally and also hunted and scared by his insecurities. When she began to stroke his cheeks, he looked up. "Me, too…", she admitted to him. Finally, she sighed. She noticed the mistakes both of them did. They needed to talk and she wanted to be honest with him. She could understand his anger now, since she hadn't noticed that she had never admitted her feelings for him… She had always thought he knew about the way she felt for him and didn't dare to imagine what he must have felt in the past months… "Logan,…"she began and he watched her closely. "…I was afraid to tell you about the pregnancy because…after the things you'd said, I…I thought you would leave me… I was afraid to lose you…" He only kept on looking at her, even when she began to cry again. "I couldn't stand losing you again, because…because I love you, Logan… I wouldn't have stayed with you otherwise! I could never use you like that… I could never bear hurting you…" Jean waited for a reaction of him. "I've always loved you…"

He only stared at her expressionless, watching a single tear running down her cheeks, while she still stroked his cheek. His heart was nearly exploding in his chest…

Jean first thought he wouldn't forgive her, since he didn't move… "We're just about to destroy everything…", she thought sadly. Offended, she looked down, as his hands gently touched her chin. Before she was able to realize it, his lips touched hers softly.

Logan pulled her as close as possible. With his eyes closed, he deepened the kiss, his hands caressing her back. He felt the psychic link rebuilding itself, which he had shut down before in disappointment. He felt her thought and emotions rushing into him, overwhelming him, while he gave her everything he had and could… Her tears wetted his cheeks and he began to kiss them away, before she rested her head against his chest. Listening to his fast beating heart, she closed her eyes and he pulled her tight, burying his face into her hair. "I love you…", Logan whispered barely audible.

Jean smiled softly. "I love you, too…" Suddenly, she winced and grimaced in pain.

"What's wrong?", he asked worriedly and watched her holding her belly. "Jean?"

She took a deep breath and tried to ease the pain. "I'm fine…", she said while opening her eyes again. "Someone kicked me, that's all…" Jean looked up at him. He wasn't convinced. "Really, Logan, I'm fine!"

Logan stepped closer, resting a hand on her abdomen. "You sure?", he asked insecurely, led her to the bed and helped her to sit down on it, while he kneeled in front of her.

"Yeah…", she nodded supporting herself with her hands on the mattress. "Someone just had fun to kick my rips…"

Slowly, Logan stretched out his hand again. She knew what he wanted to do and covered his hand with hers, leading him in his search. Jean placed their hands on the spot and watched hi face while he waited. Suddenly, he smiled and she could tell that it was one of the rare smiled of him, which reached up to his eyes.

"Hey, bub…", Jean heard him say barely audible, but still she shivered by the sound of his voice… Stop kicking your mommy, that's already my job!"

"Is it, eh?", Jean asked playfully and raised an eyebrow.

"'f course it is…" Logan said and kissed her again, before he laid down next to her.

"That's news to me, actually…"

He chuckled and stroked her back again. "So I guess we've to stay here overnight, huh?"

"So it seems…", she said, thinking about the events of the day. "Logan…?"

"Huh?"

"You would have seriously done it, wouldn't you?"

He frowned and raised his head up a bit. "Done what?"

"Exchanging me for you…"

"'f course I would've done it…"

Jean felt a stitch in her heart. "He would have killed you…"

"Probably…"

Jean pulled him closer. "Thanks for helping me out…"

"Well, wolves mate for life…", he said and kissed her again. "And besides…it was you and the cubs, don't forget that…"

"Logan…", she said while resting her hands on his chest and looking down at him. "We're no animals…"

He pulled a strand out of her face and put it behind her ear again. "Scooterboy thinks I am…", he said dryly.

"You're not! He doesn't know you…"

"I'm sorry…", Logan suddenly said and traced her features, which made her shiver again.

"For what?", Jean asked softly.

"That you'd to see _him_…", Logan said calmly.

She waved off. "You've also seen my worse side, Logan… And I trust you…"

He shook his head. "He didn't recognize you, Jean… I could have seriously hurt you…"

"No, you wouldn't have…"

"What makes you so sure about it?", he asked frowning and sat up, supporting his weight and hers with his arms in the mattress.

"Even Wolverine would recognize his _mate_ and his _cubs_…", she teased him.

He chuckled and kissed her hungrily. "You're amazing, you know that?", Logan suddenly said softly and she blushed.

"Thanks to you…", Jean whispered. "You helped me through it…"

"I told you you're strong… And besides, you beat that blue bitch, too…"

"Do you think she's still alive?"

"I bet she's! Last time I stabbed her hear and she survived…", he grunted and he immediately had to think about the tent in the woods again. Suddenly, Jean looked up at him. "Shit,…don't tell me I was sending…"

"Actually, you were…", she said frowning, but also shocked.

"Sorry, but…", Logan hesitated, not knowing how he could explain that mess to her. Then, his eyebrow shot up, as he noticed her embarrassed and blushed face. She felt ashamed. Abruptly, Logan sat up a bit when it hit him. "No…"

"I'm sorry…", Jean began and took his hands into hers. "Please, Logan, I didn't know it wasn't you!"

"Jean, didn't you see the scars? I can't have some…" He could neither believe that Mystique had tried the same trick with her, nor, and this one shocked him the most, that she'd fallen for it…

"Well,…you hadn't taken your clothes off…"

"She!", he corrected her and was still staring at her in disbelief.

Jean bit her lip. She really must have pissed off some higher being that their reconciliation never lasting long lately. Somehow, new problems seemed to be lurking around every corner and she was so lucky to catch them… Now she'd hurt him again. "I'm sorry…", Jean said again. "Now you're mad again…"

"Yeah!", Logan said, still looking at her. "I can't believe that this bitch tried it with you, too…" He paused for a moment. "I'm so gonna kill her…", he hissed and clenched his fists.

"Please, forgive me…", he heard her suddenly say and saw her despair. "I'm not mad at you… I'm mad at me that I hadn't tried it myself…"

Frowning, she looked up and saw him smirking. "Well, I wished you had…" Then she was smirking, too, after he raised an eyebrow. "I was pretty disappointed afterwards…", Jean added trying to hide her grin.

With a seductive smirk, he wrapped his arms around her. She could bet that she saw a slight trace of satisfied victory in his eyes… Immediately she knew who the loser was… "So,…", Logan began and satisfied he saw her reaction to his low and husky voice, which was mirrored in her skin. "…you do not only think that the original is much better,…you also betrayed Scooterboy…" His heart jumped by this insight. He only wished it had been him and not Mystique back then…

Jean blushed. "That pretty much sums it up…" She had felt so guilty after it had happened…, but still she'd wanted it so desperately… It had already been so hard for her tp push him away after they'd kissed at the Blackbird…

"So?", he asked and waited for her to answer his question.

"What?", she asked in confusion.

"I'm better?", he teased her smirking.

Jean smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Much better…"

Logan chuckled and kissed her. "That was the right answer!" He let go of her. "I'll get our stuff…"

She sat down on the edge of the bed and watched him leaving. "Logan…?"

He stopped and turned around, sensing that she wanted to ask him something of importance. "What?"

"When I was gone…", Jean began and looked down, unsure of how to ask him that. "Did 'Ro and you…

"No!", he cut her off and shook his head. "Jean, I said I love you…"

"I'm just trying to understand why she…" She broke off.

"Back then the only things I did was locking myself up in my room and trying to get drunk to forget…", Logan admitted to her. "And besides,…I've no interest in her…"

Jean looked up at him and smiled. "Thanks…" He gave her a short smile. "Oh and, Logan…"

He stopped again. "You still wanted to tell me something… You'd promised it months ago…"

Logan nodded. "Haven't forgotten about it… I'll just get the stuff and then we'll talk…"

**So, that was Chapter 23. 24 and 25 are already written. : ) But not typed up. ; )**

**Hope you enjoyed this one. I know it was much talking… Hope it wasn't too much!**

**Thanks for all those nice reviews: ) You really keep me going. I enjoy writing a lot, especially after taking a brake of more than 2 years from it. Thanks again for your support!**


	25. Chapter 24

**Changes Chapter 24**

Jean laid curled up against Logan's body who absently stroked her belly. He knew he's promised her to talk back then, when she's asked him why it was so hard for him to look at her… He hadn't forgotten it… how could he? Since he'd come back from their half destroyed room, they just laid on the bed without talking to each other. He knew she waited for him to start, but he cursed himself for this situation now, since it included one of the things Logan hated the most…talking about himself…

He sighed and looked down at her. She'd rested her head on her right arm, while her left hand rested on his free one. He owned her to talk…but he didn't know how to start… He wasn't someone who talked around the bush, but still it had never been so hard to choose the direct way… Logan could feel one of the babied moving again and saw her smiling pleasantly. He had to start somewhere… "I felt guilty…", he finally said barely audible and felt her turning around to look at him.

"Guilty…?", Jean asked confused.

"Yeah."

"Why!", she asked and sat up a bit to meet his eyes.

Logan shrugged and looked for the right words. He knew she was staring at him, so he fixed his eyes on the ceiling. "Because I couldn't save you…"

"That wasn't your fault…", she whispered. "I know you did anything you could, Logan… I felt bad because I had to use you to finish me… I knew you were the only one capable to stop me if necessary… I even thanked you for doing it…"

"I know it sound ridiculous…", he waved her off, resting his head on his right arm again, while stroking her back.

"No, it doesn't…", Jean said and snuggled up to him again, her head on his bare chest, while her hand ran over it gently. "I'm sorry that you felt so miserable because of me…"

"Don't be!"

An uncomfortable silence filled the room and both of them had their minds on something else. All of a sudden, Jean sat up again, supporting her arms on his chest. Curiously, but also tired, he looked up. "How's your shoulder doing? I noticed that you hold it a bit lower before…" The doctor within her came through and she examined it.

Logan chuckled. "It's fine…"

She met his eyes. "You sure?" Gently she stroked over his skin.

He pulled her head down and kissed her. "Yeah." Jean smiled at him. "Besides…", she heard him say. "I never let my clothes on!" He smirked and she had to laugh.

"Actually, you did once…" she grinned when she remembered it.

Logan frowned. "I did?"

"Yeah!"

"When?" e sat up and tried to remember it.

Jean blushed, while she absently played with his hair. "In the lab… Oh, and in the library…", she began amused.

"Busted…", he said smirking. Suddenly, she became serious again and he could hear her thoughts in his head. "I don't know", he answered her question.

Jean looked up in confusion. "What? I didn't say anything…"

He smirked. "I heard you in my head, darl'…"

"I forgot, sorry!", she said before she continued. "I can't even look at 'Ro… What has gotten into her?"

Logan shrugged. "Dunno… But from the look she gave you I can tell that she feels pretty bad."

"She better does!", Jean said angrily, but sighed. "I really don't know what to think about her… I mean,…she's my friend…"

"Yeah. Still we don't know what Mystique did…"

Jean sighed frustrated. "I know… It's just…" She bit her lip and shook her head. "Aren't you mad with her?", she asked since he remained so calm.

"'f course I am…cause she thought I'd do something like that to her… Even Chuck did…" His eyes darkened for a brief moment again, until she laid a hand on his cheek. "I thought he could read minds…", Logan grunted, still feeling the disappointment within him.

"Maybe you blocked him without knowing it", Jean tried to calm him down.

He snorted. "Yeah…or he just sees the same in me as everyone else does…"

"He doesn't!" He only snorted. "Scott and the Professor only believed what they heard. As you said…we didn't use our heads…" Finally, Logan smirked vaguely. Jean cuddled up to him again. "We should sleep now… I bet you still have some wounds to heal…" She kissed him gently and he pulled her close.

"Still gotta blame ya for something…", he grunted after a while.

She frowned, thinking that she did something wrong. "…for what?", Jean asked cautiously.

"Your old bed…" he chuckled, since he had felt her wince. "It's damn uncomfortable…"

"Jerk!", Jean cursed playfully and slapped him softly.

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"First of all, I want to thank you all for coming." Charles looked at the mutants who reserved all the chairs in his office. He smiled at them warmly until his eyes caught something of importance. Two chairs were still empty… "Where are Jean and Logan? Has someone seen them?"

"No", Kitty said and looked at Peter and Bobby who also shook their heads.

"Rogue?", the Professor asked.

"They weren't in the kitchen for breakfast early that morning…and besides…" She stopped and wasn't sure if she should say it. But still she was angry with the adults. She couldn't forget nor forgive how they'd treated Logan. "After how you treated Logan… Well, I'd be surprised if he shows up…"

Charles sighed. He had thought about it the whole night through. He regretted it terribly… With his actions he might have destroyed the trust of Logan, for which he had to fight so hard… He should have known better. "I know I did a terrible mistake…"

"Not only you did!", Marie said and gave Scott and Storm a look. "You even hindered me to tell you that he was with Kitty, Bobby, Peter and me after he finished his training…"

"I'm very sorry, Marie", Charles said. "And if Logan gives me the chance to apologize…"

He stopped as the door suddenly opened. Like all others, he looked towards it and gladly smiled after Jean entered first and was closely followed by Logan. While he wore his favorite pair of blue jeans, a grey tank shirt and a blue lumberjack shirt over it, she apparently wore some of his clothes. His black track pants and his grey sweatshirt with a hood, both too large for her, but still just enough to cover her belly. Both of them seemed to have just left the shower, since their hair was still wet. Logan only glared shortly at the two empty chairs next to Scott and Ororo. He snorted and sat down on the other side, where Rogue and her friends were sitting, who moved up closer to make room for him. Jean followed him. Since there was no free room left on the sofa, Logan held out his arms and she sat down on his lap, while she wrapped her arms around his neck. He shot a deadly look at Scott and Storm and she looked down feeling ashamed.

"I'm glad that the two of you joined us!", the Professor said, but immediately noticed Logan's cold eyes. He knew that it would cost a lot of work to gain back his trust…

"I'm only here because she wanted me to come…", Logan said. "So save any long speeches for yourself!" Jean met his eyes and he nodded while sighting in frustration. "Fine…go on!" Before coming down, he had to promise her that he wouldn't pick a fight. And he would keep his promise…

The Professor nodded. "I wanted to discuss with all of you how we shall proceed!", he began and looked to and fro between them. "After what Mystique has told us before, Magneto plans to attack us soon. We have to make plans for any scenario! Including the safety of the students, possible escape routes for them and us, but also offense and defense plans…", Charles explained seriously. "I want you to built teams, so that everyone takes care of one field of operations and informs the others about his or her scenario." He noticed the looks Scott and Logan gave each other. The tension in this room became unbearable… "Hank and Ororo, the two of you will deal with the escape routes and you also have to search for hiding places. Moira joins you and takes care of the medical equipment." The two mutants nodded in agreement. "Jean, I'd like you and the younger X-Men to go through the emergency exits with the students again. Shoe them the routes they have to choose to get out of here quickly in case of an attack."

Jean nodded. "Okay." She winced for a brief moment and blinked, while taking a deep breath. Immediately, she felt Logan staring at her worriedly.

"Scott", Charles continued. "I'd like you to team up with Logan for the offense and defense plans!"

"What! No way!", Scott said immediately.

"Forget it!", Logan had grunted at the same time.

The Professor looked at both men completely seriously. "This is about the safety of the students and the school! Scott is the best in defense, while you're the best in offence scenarios. We have to work together in order to get everyone out of here alive in case of an attack! So come over your disagreement and start acting like a team!", he told them straight ahead.

Logan only smirked. "Not afraid that I might stab him?", he asked sarcastically.

Jean laid a hand on his shoulder, sensing that he couldn't suppress his anger anymore. "Don't…"

He growled. "Fine! But if he only looks oddly at me…" Logan broke off as he looked at her. He frowned and felt her body tense again. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing!"

Before he could ask again, the Professor started to speak. "Good. Please start as soon as possible! I will try to find out their hideout in the meanwhile." He watched them stand up. "Oh, and Logan, I need to speak with you alone!"

Logan rolled his eyes and let go off Jean, who left the room with the others. "What is it?"

Charles maneuvered his wheelchair around the table. "I wanted to apologize for my actions yesterday…", he began and looked up at the man in front of him, who had his arms folded in front of his chest.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Jean,…please wait!"

Jean stopped with one hand pressed against her back, while the other was rested on her belly.

"Can we talk, please?", Ororo asked cautiously.

"there's nothing to talk about!", Jean answered coldly.

"I know, but please let me explain…!"

She heard the despair in Storm's voice, but still she was very angry. "There's nothing to explain, Storm! Even if it was a masquerade, it doesn't change the fact that you slept with _my_ partner!"

Storm swallowed and looked down. "I know…and I knot that a _please forgive me_ isn't enough…"

Jean narrowed her eyes. "Then what do you want?"

"Trying to explain it…", her opposite said, despair echoing from her voice. She grabbed Jean's arm as the woman wanted to leave. "She made me do it, Jean…", Ororo said and sobbed. "I couldn't resist, it happened so fast…"

Jean's eyes were cold. "Did she rape you?"

"What? No…!"

"Then you could have resisted!", she shot back angrily and took held of her back again while biting her lips.

"No, you don't understand…", Ororo tried again. "I pushed him back, but he pinned me to the wall and just did it…" She sobbed hard now. "Really, I tried… I didn't want it to happen…"

"_She_ did!" It wasn't Logan so stop saying _he_!"

"I know…", Ororo looked down. "Really, I tried, Jean… Please, believe me! I tried!"

Jean eyed her for a brief moment. She saw the shame and pain in Storm's eyes, the despair…but still she was very angry. If she only imagined the scene… "Do you love him?", she asked her straight ahead. "And don't lie to me!"

Storm looked up, biting her lip. "I like him…a lot… But I know that he only has eyes for you and loves you more than anything else… I would never try to get between the two of you, Jean! You have to believe me!"

Jean just wanted to give a reply to it, as she felt pain rushing through her body. She groaned and reached out for the wall to take hold of it. Storm had noticed it and had grabbed her arm immediately. "What's wrong?", she asked frightened, since it was to early for the babies to be born.

"The lab…" Jean panted. "Get me to it, quickly…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"I know I did a terrible mistake, Logan… But you know that I never read minds without permission of that person", Charles explained calmly.

"In that moment you should have done it without!", Logan grunted.

"Yes, I know…" The Professors head sank down. "I am really sorry for having my doubts about you, Logan. I really am and I hope that you can forgive me some day…"

His opposite hadn't moved an inch since the others had left. He eyed the man in front of him suspiciously.

"I know we offended and disappointed you… We should have known better…"

"The Brotherhood want to tear us apart…", Logan said calmly. "If they're successful, we don't have the slightest chance against them and you could already pre-order some fan shirts… I thought you know that! A team is only as strong as their weakest link!"

"You're not our weakest link, Logan!", Charles said and shook his head.

Logan snorted. "Really? When it comes to your trust I am…", he gave back sarcastically.

"As I said…I am really sorry!", the Professor protested to him again. "Can you forgive an old fool once more, Logan?" He held out his right hand top show the man in front of him that he really meant it.

Logan looked at the hand for a moment and thought about it. Finally, he took it. "Last chance, Chuck! Better don't ruin it!"

The Professor smiled. "Thank you! And please,…I know it's hard for you, but at least try to work with Scott as a team…"

Logan had already turned around and had opened the door. Nevertheless, he stopped. "Can't promise it! If he attacks me again, he'll face the consequences!" With that he was gone and left the Professor even more worried than before…

On the corridor, he looked around and hoped to find Jean. But she was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, his ears heard someone running towards him from far away and he turned his head into this direction.

"Logan!", Storm called and stopped breathlessly in front of him.

His heart rate exploded immediately. "Where's she?"

"She's down in the lab. She's…", she began but he was already heading down the hall.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When he reached the lab door, Logan impatiently pushed the button to pen it. He squeezed through as it started to move aside and found Jean sitting on the lab table. With a jump he was at her side. "What's wrong? Are you alright?", Logan asked breathlessly.

"Yeah… I'm sorry it was my fault!", Jean looked up and met his scared and worried looking eyes. She took his hand into hers. "I must have dislocated my back somehow and a nerve was caught. Because it suddenly hurt so much, I thought it was abdominal pain… I'm sorry if I'd scared you…" Apologetic she looked up at him, but he only kissed her.

"Told you your mattress was crap!", he smirked, while feeling relieved. But still his heart was racing in a deadly rhythm. He'd first believed that something happened to her and the babies…

Jean smiled slightly. "Yeah… I know…"

"But the three of you are fine?", Logan asked just to be sure of it.

"They are! All three of them!", he just heard Moira say from behind and turned around. "Sorry, Jean but it took longer than I thought."

"What took longer?", Logan immediately asked, while Jean was still holding his hands.

"The printer of the ultrasound scanner is broken, so I had to send the pictures over to the PC in the meeting room", Moira explained and stopped next to them. "Here they are!"

Jean took them out of her hands and looked at them smiling, while Logan raised an eyebrow.

"You can actually see anything on it?", he asked and tilted his head.

"Sure!", she said, while tracing the features with her fingers.

"To me it looks like snow on television…", he grunted. Moira laughed and shook her head. "What?", he asked eying her frowning.

She waved off. "I could have bet that you'd say something like that."

"Yeah, because it does!", he grunted.

Moira smiled. "Jean, would you mind?"

"No…", Jean answered and laid down again, while pulling up the shirt. Logan watched her frowning.

"Now, just for you, mister, I'll do it again!", Moira said and worked on the scanner again.

He bent forward; supporting his weight next to Jean's head on the table and looked up to the screen. He frowned, since he only saw snow on it.

Moira noticed it. "Men…", she shook her head laughing. "Now look!" She ran the scanner over Jean's belly again and soon two moving embryos were displayed on the screen. "See?", she asked and turned around to face him. "Here's the first and that's the other… Both healthy and very much alive…"

Jean had taken his hand into hers again and looked up at his not moving face. She watched as he sat down on the chair next to her, while his eyes were still fixed on the screen. Jean frowned, since he didn't even show the slightest trace of an emotion… "What do you think?", she asked him mentally, afraid that he would ran out of the room any moment.

Suddenly, Logan turned his head and looked down at her. She'd rarely seen him smile so happily at her before or that even his eyes radiated from complete joy… Gently, he kissed her. "They're beautiful…" he thought back and she smiled.

"Softie!", Jean teased him and smirked.

"Thanks!", Logan said and Moira nodded friendly.

"Do you want to know the gender?", she asked them. "Or can you still wait for two months?"

"Do you?", he asked Jean. Of course he wanted to know, but he left the decision to her.

"I think I want to be surprised…", she said. "Is that okay for you?"

He nodded. "Sure…"

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A few minutes later, they used the elevator on their way back upstairs. When they reached the upper level, Jean wanted to head towards Rogue's room to discuss when they should meet for the emergency exits instruction.

"Hey!", Logan said and stopped her. "Where're ya going?"

"To Rogue… We still need to…"

"Nope!", he cut her off and shook his head. "You'll lie down and rest your back now." Gently, he pulled her with him. "I'll just get the mattress from our room."

"but…", she protested.

"What?"

"Well, actually…" Jean sighed. "I wanted to prepare something for us later…"

"You can do it after you've rested!", Logan said inflexible. "Now off you go! I'll be right there!"

While watching him heading towards their room, Jean still had to smile. This new solicitous side of him was really cute, she thought, before she walked to her old room.

**Thanks for your reviews again! It took a bit longer to type up, sorry for that! I'm also sorry for those X-lines in between, but the upload always erases the paragraphs I make. : ( So I had to do it like that. : ( Hope you enjoyed reading! ; )**


	26. Chapter 25

**Changes Chapter 25**

Logan walked down the corridor, his hands buried deep in his jeans pockets. It was far past 9:30 p.m. and the Professor had asked him to do the night duty, which he had introduced so that always one of the adults was watching over the others in case of an attack. Only few students walked past him from time to time. He always took a closer look on them, making sure that no younger student was still running around. He didn't know since when he was overprotective and so supportive, but he also didn't care. He slowly walked past the large TV room.

"Hey, Logan!"

He smiled. "Hey kid!" Logan walked over to Rogue and her friends after checking the hallway again. "How ya doin'?"

"Good!", she smiled.

"Doing the night duty, eh?", Bobby asked, while he wrapped his arms around Rogue.

"Yeah…", Logan answered. "What about you? What are you guys doing?"

"Just sitting around", Rogue said. "There wasn't anything interesting on TV…"

"I see…"

"How long do you have to stay up?", Jubilee asked.

He shrugged. "6 or 8 a.m. probably…"

She smirked and winked. "Well, if you get bored, I'll bet you find something to kill time…"

Logan only gave her a look. Suddenly, he turned his head. "Hold on a second!"

Confused the three of them watched him leave. Curious as she was, Jubilee smiled at them, jumped off the sofa and walked towards the huge doorway. Smirking, she turned her head towards her friends and beckoned over them. Bobby gave Rogue a look and finally they joined her. "What is it?", Rogue asked, but Jubilee only pointed down the hall.

XXX

"Hey, Luke!", Logan called after the small boy who walked down the hallway. The boy stopped immediately and turned around slowly. By only looking at him one could tell that he had a lots of respect for the man in front of him, as nearly all of the kids had. Logan stopped in front of him. "What are you doing?"

"Well, I…", the boy stuttered and looked to the ground.

The grown up smirked slightly and kneeled down to look at the boy on eye level. "You should be lying in bed by now, you know that?", he asked more softly.

Slowly, the boy looked up, looking at Logan was his big blue eyes. "I was thirsty…", he said shyly. "But I got lost…"

Logan smiled. "You're new here, ain't ya?" The boy nodded intimidated. The grown up got up, still one hand buried in his pocket. "Come on, I'll show you." The boy instinctively took his free hand. Surprised, Logan looked down at him. Still he had to smile. If his bad boy image hadn't already suffered before, it would have been destroyed completely by now. He walked with the boy on his hand down the corridor towards the kitchen. Surprised he stopped. "Hey…"

"Hey!", Jean greeted back, while going on to cut vegetables. "Hi Luke!" She smiled when she saw how the two of them entered the kitchen.

Logan pulled Luke up so that the boy was now sitting on the counter. "So what do you wanna drink?", he asked the boy and opened the fridge. "Juice?" Luke just nodded. He opened a bottle with orange juice for him and handed it over to the boy. "Here ya go!"

"Thanks!", Luke said and smiled.

"Do you know the way back?", Logan asked him after he had emptied the bottle.

"No...", ashamed he looked down.

"'Kay. I'll take you back. But then you'll sleep!", he winked.

"Yeah!", Luke nodded sleepily and Jean had to smile, since the boy stretched out his arms. Logan raised an eyebrow and gave her a look, which made her grin. Finally, he took the boy in his arms and carried him back to his rooms.

XXX

Jubilee grinned widely at him when he walked past them on his way back to the kitchen. Logan gave her a look, knowing that she once again found something to tease him with. "Aw, Wolvie! That was too cute!", she purred and watched him coming over to them, while he narrowed his eyes. "Nah, ya ain't threatening me with that anymore!", Jubilee waved off. "Ya ain't the baddy here anymore, but the cutie!" She winked again.

Slowly, Logan supported himself with his arms on the seat back of the sofa. He didn't take the eyes of the three. "And the _cutie_ tells the three of ya now to go off to bed, before the _baddy_ reappears!"

Bobby helped up Rogue and walked towards the doorway, while Jubilee followed them.

"Night, Logan!", Rogue and Bobby said.

"Night, kids!"

"Do you carry me, too?", Jubilee asked smirking.

"One more time and I kick you up the stairs!", Logan grunted.

She laughed. "Night!"

He sighed and ran a hand through his face. He had such a feeling that this was going to be a very long night… Suddenly, his ears heard some noise in the kitchen and he began to smirk.

Logan returned to the kitchen where Jean was still standing at the range and cooking something. Curiously, he leant against the doorway, folded his arms and watched her smirking. "What are ya doing?"

Jean smiled and turned her head to look at him briefly. "Cooking a meal…?"

He chuckled. "Yeah, I see that." He came closer. "And what?"

She stirred the thick mass in the pan. Chicken Enchiladas."

"What?", he asked frowning and she smirked.

"Never ate Mexican stuff, huh?"

He stopped next to her and bent forwards. "Canadian, remember?", he whispered into her ears and made her shiver. Logan looked into the pan. "So, who's the company you're cooking for? Got a rendezvous?"

"Uhu…", Jean answered and grabbed the salt.

He nodded playfully. "I see… Someone I know?"

She smirked. "Yeah. I think so…" She tasted the mass in the pan again. Finally she took a ladle into her hand and the tortillas into the other.

Logan watched her further. "Do I have to be jealous?"

"Oh, yeah, Jean said and opened the oven to finish her dish. "You definitely have to be!"

Logan tilted his head and nodded speculatively. "Tell me about him!", he said and raised an eyebrow while watching her in amusement.

Jean smirked again and leant opposite of him against the counter. "Well, he can be nice if he wants to be, is stubborn like hell, incredible sexy in his tank shirts…", she listed. "…and responsible for me looking like a whale…" Logan chuckled. "You think that's funny?", she asked him pretending to be angry and slapped him against the chest. "Men…"

He grabbed her and pulled her close while pressing a kiss on her neck. "You're not looking like a whale…"

"Ah, stop making a fool out of me! Even your clothes are too small…", she cried and leant against him.

"I'm not!", Logan said softly and caressed her neck gently. "You're beautiful…"

Jean blushed and smiled softly, while she turned around in his arms to face him. "Softie…", she teased him.

He shrugged playfully. "Well, actually I thought I was stubborn like hell…" He raised an eyebrow at her jokingly.

"You are!", Jean said. "Not in the last days, but you can be very stubborn!"

"So, and you actually like that guy so much that you cook dinner for him at night, even if he made you _look like a whale_?", Logan teased her back.

"So I do look like one?", she asked in return and eyed him suspiciously.

"Even if you did, you're still mine…", he said and kissed her neck passionately. "And no, you don't!"

"Uhu…", Jean nodded playfully. "You're getting entangled in contradictions, hon'…"

He smirked. "Nah, I don't!" Quickly, he'd lifted her up and dropped her on the counter. Immediately, he pulled her close and kissed her again. Jean closed her eyes and gasped for air when he licked her neck. "Logan…" She was barely able to say anything. "Someone could catch us…"

He only grunted and silenced her by closing her lips with his. His hands steadied her hip, while she automatically placed both legs on each side of him. Logan heard her moan against him as his tongue touched hers. Feeling the heat rising within him, his hands wandered under her shirt and up her back.

"Just ignore me!", they suddenly heard someone saying and separated immediately. Jubilee only grinned and closed the fridge again, while opening the bottle. "I'll be gone now and the two of you can go on!", she winked and smirked at Logan, whose look told her to shut up and piss off. "See? I'm gone! Feel free to go on!" Suddenly, she stopped and looked towards him. "Besides…", Jubilee said smirking. "You're drooling, _cutie_!" With that she left, leaving Jean blushed and Logan frustrated.

"Told you so!", she said calmly and looked down, feeling embarrassed.

Logan looked at her and could tell that her blushing wasn't because of the interruption. It didn't take him long to change plans. "How long does the stuff still need?", he suddenly asked. Frowning, Jean looked up, still feeling him hard against her. "About ten minutes, why?"

Logan lifted her off the counter and took her hand in his. He headed towards the door. "That's just enough…"

XXX

"I know that it was wrong, Hank…"

He watched Ororo walking up and down the room and wondered how long it would still take until there'd be a hole in the ground. "I still don't get why you did it, 'Ro."

She sighed and finally stopped just to sit down on the bed next to him. "Me neither…" Storm paused for a brief moment. "The worst thing is the look he gives me…"

"Does he not always look at others like that?", Hank asked frowning.

"What? The _I seize you up for a coffin_ look?", she shook her head. "No that one's left for me lately…" Hank didn't say anything. "I really don't know what to do, Hank… After all the fights we had, everything went well again…" Storm bent her head down. "And then I come and destroy everything again…"

Hank laid a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it softly. "Did you try to talk to him?"

She snorted. "To Logan?", Ororo asked sarcastically. "Did you ever try to talk to him when he's pissed off at you!" She shook her head. "If he hates you, he hates you with all his heart!"

"I doubt that he hates you, 'Ro…", Hank said. "He might be angry with you, but he doesn't hate you…"

Storm looked at him. "I doubt that…"

He took her hand in his. "Believe me, he doesn't! I speak from experience that men act like kids if you hurt their ego! The more manly a guy is, the more he behaves like a hurt child!" He winked. "You only have to get him to talk to you."

She laughed bitterly. "That's impossible, believe me! Logan is one hundred percent complete testosterone!"

XXX

"And?", Jean asked cautiously and watched Logan eating. "Do you like it?"

He swallowed. "Yeah!"

"Really?", she asked and put her fork aside.

Logan smiled at her. "It tastes great, Jeannie. Really!"

Relieved, she smiled back. "Good, because I've never tried to cook it before…"

Logan had a sip pf his beer. "Thanks for doing it!"

"You're welcome", she said happily. "So how's the night duty going?"

"Boring, before I came into the kitchen."

Jean smiled and put the dishes together. "Did Luke get lost?"

"Yeah…", Logan answered and put the beer down again. "How old is he anyway?"

"Why? Because he wanted to be carried?", she asked amused. "He's five."

"Five? Pretty young for a student here, isn't it?", he said surprised.

Jean nodded. "Both his parents are mutants. He's here because he's highly intelligent. He already read books on physics when he was just three years old…"

Logan was truly impressed. "Smart boy…"

"Yeah, he truly is." Jean looked at him closely. "I was thinking…"

"About what?", he asked and returned her look.

"If you're not too tired later…could we drive to the next mall? It's about time to buy baby stuff…", she explained calmly and waited for his reaction.

"Isn't it too dangerous? I mean, Magneto might be waiting for such an opportunity…"

"The Professor said he highly doubts that we would be attacked… And we can't keep on waiting for him to make a start forever…"

Logan nodded. "When do you want to leave?"

"After you got enough sleep…"

"Fine with me!" He stood up and took the dishes towards the dishwasher.

Jean smiled and got off her chair, too. She still couldn't get used to her slower movements. "Do you mind if Bobby and Rogue join us?"

"No, I don't!", he said and turned around. "As long as you two girls don't plan to buy the whole mall…"

She laughed. "Don't worry, just the half one!"

"Good!", he smirked and kissed her. "Thanks again for the dinner…"

Jean smiled. "No problem. I got hungry anyway." Suddenly, Logan turned his head. "What's wrong?"

"Ssh!" He let go of her to concentrate harder on the sounds he heard. "Someone's at the door…"

Jean frowned and followed him as he left the kitchen. Slowly, he walked towards the main entrance. He popped his claws on one hand, while he signaled Jean to stay behind him with the other. His hand reached out and touched the doorknob. Logan frowned as he heard a jangling noise and sniffed.

"What?", she asked as he retracted the claws again, turned the keys around and opened the door.

Staring rather pissed at his opposite, Logan raised an eyebrow. "Do you know how late it is, bub? It's far past midnight!"

Warren smiled vaguely. "Sorry, Logan…I had a meeting with my father. I've not looked at my watch…"

Logan scanned the grounds before he locked the door again. "Yeah, yeah…forget it!"

Warren nodded towards Jean, before he headed towards the dormitories.

"Kids…", Logan grunted.

"Well, you can start getting used to it…", she said in amusement, when he gave her a _not gonna happen with mine_ look. She yawned. "Well, I'm better off to bed, too…"

Together they walked down the corridor and up the stairs. Logan looked up as he heard voices and soon Ororo and Hank came into view. Both mutants were under consideration and didn't take notice of them. Jean and Logan had nearly reached the next floor, when Ororo turned her head and took notice of them. She shrieked as she missed the first step and fell right into Jean's direction. Logan jumped and pushed Jean out of the way into Hanks arms, before Storm slammed hard against him. Hank took hold of Jean and both of them had to watch as the other two mutants fell down the staircase…

While falling, Logan instinctively grabbed Ororo and pulled her close trying to protect her. They hit the wooden banister hard. Because of Logan's adamantium skeleton's weight, they broke straight through it. He kept her on top as good as he could, so that he was the first to hit the floor… Nevertheless, they turned around in the air…

A loud crash echoed through the mansion, as Logan's shoulder hit the ground hard, while he'd turned her around just in time, before he'd have slammed into her. She yelled in pain as the rest of him landed on her right foot. "Logan!", Jean shrieked loudly and headed down the stairs, followed by Hank who supported her. Just as they'd reached them, the ceiling lights were turned on. Scott and the Professor, followed by Moira and a few other students had arrived above them and looked at the scenery on the lower level in shock.

Logan laid face down on the ground, while Storm laid on his back. He grimaced in pain and turned around, taking her with him. He raised his head a bit, but groaned immediately as a sharp pain rushed through his shoulder and back. He felt a thick liquid running down his cheek and closed his eyes again. "Logan!", Jean said breathlessly and kneeled down beside him, while Hank did the same on the other side. "Are you alright?"

"'Ro?", Hank asked and laid a hand on her shoulder, since she wasn't moving. Immediately, she winced and breathed in sharply.

"What happened?", Scott asked and stopped next to them, followed by Moira who took a closer look in both mutants.

"What happened!", Logan grunted and got up slowly, ignoring the stars in front of his eyes, while the wound above his right eye healed.

"Easy!", Jean said worriedly and laud a hand on his leg. She pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket and wiped away the blood from his face. Her heart was still racing in shock. If he hadn't reacted so fast…

"She nearly kicked Jean down the staircase, that happened!", he continued angrily and looked at Storm who was still lying on his legs and groaned. "Damn it, get her off me!"

"It was an accident!", Hank said and gave him a look, while he helped Moira to turn Ororo slowly around.

Logan shot a deadly look at him and got up slowly and limping with his hand on his shoulder. He was too furious right now. "There will be another _accident_ if you do not get her out of my face very quickly!", he hissed and turned to Jean. "You okay?"

"Yeah…besides the shock", she said with a scared look in her eyes. "But what about you? You don't look fine…" She laid a hand on his, which Scott noticed.

"Will be in a minute…". He growled and turned hi head as the Professor appeared next to them.

"You should lay down, Logan. Just in case…", he said and looked first at him, then down to Ororo. "Scott, could you take over the night duty, please?"

Scott nodded slowly while he was still watching Jean and Logan. "Sure…"

Moira eyed Logan suspiciously. "You'll come with us!"

"What!", the mutant grunted and narrowed his eyes.

"From your body language, I can tell that you're more seriously wounded. So you'll come with us down to the lab!"

"I said I'll be fine in a minute!", he protested.

"Yeah, you said it a minute ago and you still do not look fine."

Jean took his hand. "Go with her…"

He snorted and noticed the worried look on her face. "Fine…"

Hank helped Storm to her feet, but she immediately yelled. "Wait, I'll lift you up…", he said softly and she groaned when he pulled her into his arms…


	27. Chapter 26

**Changes Chapter 26**

"As I thought…", Moira said and switched off the ultrasound scanner.

"What!", Logan asked stressed and raised an eyebrow at her. All he wanted was to get some rest so that his wounds could finally heal…

She looked down at him, before she searched his abdomen again. "You've got some internal injuries. Don't ask me how you managed to do that… Not to forget your shoulder…"

Storm who laid on the table next to him and was treated by Hank looked up worriedly. She already had her right foot bandaged, while he was now working on her arm.

"That's nothing!", Logan grunted, while he felt like a kid.

"It is!", Moira said and pushed him back on the table, since he wanted to get up. "As I said, don't ask me how you did it, but you hit your spleen and one of your kidneys…"

"Well, I was misused as an airbag, wasn't I?", he grunted. "And if I'd gotten some rest I'd be fine by now!" He seriously asked himself how long it would take Jean to save him from here. He began to feel very uncomfortable.

Hank gave Moira a look and she understood what he was up too immediately. "Whatever, you stay here, while I get some bandages. And don't even dare to move!", she said and headed towards the exit, while Logan looked at her with an raised eyebrow and thought she was kidding.

"Bandages! Do I look like if I needed _bandages?_", he asked her pissed.

"You heard me!", she only answered before she was gone.

"I'll need some stuff for your arm, too, 'Ro", Hank suddenly said. "Be right back!"

As soon as the door went shut behind him, the tension in the room became unbearable. Storm swallowed hard. She could almost feel his anger gnawing at her… If his rage had gotten weaker before, she'd given him the perfect reason to be mad at her again. If Logan hadn't reacted so fast… She didn't even dare to think further if she had hit Jean instead of him…

Storm felt scared, very scared right now… Nevertheless, she recalled Hank's advice which he'd given her earlier that night. Now was the perfect opportunity to talk to him,…on the other hand it couldn't have been a less perfect moment… Slowly, Ororo turned her head and looked at him. Should she really try it? The chance to piss him off even more was great… Storm swallowed hard once again. "How do you f…"

"If that's a attempt to start a conversation…leave it!", Logan immediately growled.

"But, Logan, I…", she tried again, but he cut her off once more.

"I said leave it!"

"But I couldn't do anything against your doppelganger!"

With a growl, he sat up. "I'm not talking about that, Storm!" He stared at her like a wolf at his prey.

Ashamed, she looked down. "I'm sorry…"

"Do you even realize what could've happened if Jean had fallen down the staircase instead of me?", he asked her angrily and his eyes mirrored the fury he felt within.

"Yeah…", she said barely audible. "But I got scared when I saw the two of you in front of me all of a sudden…and then…" She broke off and took a deep breath. "I'm really sorry, Logan! For everything…" Ororo looked at him pleadingly, but he only gave her a deadly look and laid down again without saying anything.

XXX

"What are you guys doing here?", Jean asked in confusion and looked at Hank and Moira, who were standing outside of the lab and seemed to wait for something.

"Waiting…", Hank said, his arms folded in front of his chest.

"For what?", she asked again and frowned. Neither could she hear Logan destroying anything in his rage, nor could she hear anyone talking on the other side of the door.

"We want them to talk with each other, Jean!", Moira explained calmly. "Things can't go on like this forever…"

"You do not seriously believe that Logan is only going to look at her!", Jean said in disbelief and eyed her opposites while she nearly had start laughing. By now she knew him better than anyone at the mansion. She, herself, had seen what he was like if he was mad with someone…

"Yes, we do!", Hank said. "He just stopped yelling at her before you arrived…"

She looked at the door again and tried to hear anything. She couldn't even hear Logan within her mind. "And what do you think is he doing right now?", she asked nearly sounding sarcastically.

He shrugged. "Talking more quietly with her?"

Jean snorted and shook her head. "You don't really believe that, do you?"

"Jean, it was an accident!", Hank said outraged. "I can understand that you're mad at her because of what she did…, but I can't understand his point here… I don't even see his point here!"

"He's disappointed because of the lack of trust everyone gave him!", she shot back.

"You believed it, too!"

"Yeah, and I apologized for it!", she said and folded her arms in front of her chest.

Hank turned around to face her, but Moira was faster. "Ororo just did it, too", she told her.

"And…?"

"He didn't accept it!", Hank said with an angry undertone.

"What do you think?", Jean asked them sarcastically.

"Well, he accepted yours, didn't he?", he asked her again.

"Yeah, he did…", she gave back with a half smile. "After nearly an hour!" She sighed and leant against the wall. Hank did the same again.

"So, what do you think is he doing right now?", Moira asked worriedly.

She shrugged. "Brooding while staring at the ceiling and ignoring her, perhaps?" At least that's the thing he usually did when he was pissed off, she thought.

"Nah, I doubt that!", Hank said, since he still had hope.

XXX

Inside, Logan laid on his back, while his head rested on his arms and he stared at the ceiling, brooding over the things his mind came up with. Storm looked over to him, knowing that he was ignoring her completely now. She had to do something. She wanted his forgiveness…if not his trust, then at least this… "What do you think?", she asked calmly. "What is keeping them all this time…?"

"They're staying in front of this door with Jean. They just stopped talking…", he grunted. He had heard everything of the conversation on the other side of the door.

"And why don't they just come in?"

"What do you think!", he said and gave her a look that mirrored his annoyance perfectly. He only wanted to get out, get to bed and sleep, so that his body could finally rest… He hated it to be stuck in here with her, while the others were waiting outside and wanted him to talk to Storm… "Well, except Jean…", he thought and sighed.

Ororo broke eye contact again. Her foot and arm still hurt like hell. But thanks to him, nothing was broken. He'd saved her from serious injuries, even if he'd never admit it. "Thank you by the way…", she said calmly and felt even more bad than she'd already felt before, because he'd taken nearly all the damage, just because of her… "If you hadn't grabbed me…"

"Don't mention it…", Logan grunted, while his healing factor finally kicked in and started to work on his inner injuries. Suddenly, he felt very tired… He turned his head to take a look on Ororo, who sat like misery itself on the second lab table. She was clearly ashamed and felt offended as he could tell. Logan recalled his conversation with Jean… He'd forgiven her, he wasn't even really mad at her because she's slept with his doppelganger… But why did he feel different about Storm? Was it because he loved Jean with all his heart? Because she was carrying his children? Or because of the link they shared from the very first moment they'd met? He couldn't tell, but he knew it wasn't fair… He himself had told the Professor about a team being only as strong as its weakest link… And now it was him who made her the weakest link…

Logan sighed. She'd been there for him when he'd felt miserable and she, too, made the first step to talk with Jean after her return, even if Storm had been mad with her… No, he really wasn't fair right now… "Look", Logan finally said and she looked up in surprise. "I'm disappointed because of your lack of trust in me... You apologized for it, fine with me…" Slowly, he sat up with his eyes still fixed on her, while she was staring back. "But you endangered Jean and the kids because of your lack of attention…!"

"I know…" Ashamed she looked down. "But I really got scared…"

He sighed. "You should stop worrying about me being mad with you…", he continued and looked towards the door. "To gain Jean's trust back…that's the thing ya should be seriously worried about!" He slipped off the table, knowing that his healing factor had done its job. Logan stopped in front of her. "And now stop looking at me like that, 'Ro!"

She tried to smile but failed. "If you stop looking at me as if you're seizing me up for a coffin…"

He chuckled. "Fine, I do!" With that he left her and went towards the door. "Thank you!", he heard her say before the doors closed after him.

"Ya reached your aim Furball!", Logan said to Hank, before he turned towards Jean.

"You okay?", she asked worriedly and he took her hands into his, before he kissed her.

Logan nodded. "Yeah, come on let's go to bed."

Hank smiled satisfied and turned to Moira, who gave him a look. "What did I say?"

She smiled vaguely. "You can be lucky that Logan has changed a lot lately…", she gave back, before both of them entered the lab again.

**Okay, that chapter was a short one again. The next one doesn't have too much action too (but the one after it ; ) ). Only so much: You might remember that they still need to go shopping for the kids, right? ; )**

**93 reviews,…that really are far, far more than I had ever imagined… THANKS A LOT FOR IT! You really keep me going and I still have fun writing it. So far everything's written up to Chapter 28. And I promise that 29 will be very shocking. ; ) Yeah, a bad cliffie again, as some of you would say. But I still got to write it. ; )**

**So, hope you liked it how I dealt with Logan and Storm! ; ) (And I hope there are not too many mistakes in this one. I noticed a lot in the previous ones : ( Sorry, for that!) Thanks again for all the nice reviews and the support! You're my heroes!**


	28. Chapter 27

**Author's note: 98 reviews…that's even more than great and makes me really happy. : ) So, I thought about something: Number 100 will get a message from me and…nah…I won't tell. ;) **

**The Carebear mentioned here is of course a hint to Kavi Leighanna's fanfic Rebirth. You guys should read it! ; )**

**Changes Chapter 27**

Loud hammering echoed through the mansion on the next day. Peter and Scott where trying with the help of Hank to fix the wall in Logan's old room since the early morning.

"God…", Hank moaned and paused for a brief moment, while he let go off the wooden slat. "I believe if you only give him enough speed, my friend, Logan could easily destroy the whole mansion at once…and afterwards he'd just get up and walk away…"

Peter smiled and hit another nail into the wood. "Where's he anyway? It's his wall in the end…", Hank asked.

"He was repairing the banister the last time I've seen him", Peter said and look at his work.

"He's playing the lovely father who goes shopping with his _girlfriend_…", Scott grunted. "Rogue and Bobby included."

"Ah, come on, Scott…", hank said and shook his head, while he steadied the next slat. "You should really get over it…"

"I'll never get over it!", the other man said barely audible and got up.

"You just don't like the fact that it is Logan on Jean's side now… It would be a complete different situation if it…"

"Leave it!", Scott hissed angrily.

"Why? Because you just won't accept the truth?", Hank shot back. He eyed his opposite frowning.

Scott put his hands to his hips. "Which truth? That he's all of a sudden every girl's darling here?"

Hank raised an eyebrow and looked at Peter in confusion, since he didn't know what the other man was talking about. "I suppose he means the situation in the kitchen after Jean put him back together…", he explained and kept on working.

"Oh, so you're jealous!", Hank smirked and handed more nails over to Peter. If they kept on working like that they should be done in a few hours. Nevertheless, they still had to plaster the wall.

"I'm NOT jealous!", Scott said more loudly and handed over the next slat.

"No, of course not…", his opposite noticed. "You're only acting like a cuckold!"

Scott let the slats fall to the ground and looked at him furiously. "What the hell do you know!", he nearly yelled in anger. His blood was boiling within him.

Hank faced him angrily. He couldn't believe how much the man in front of him had changed lately. "What I know?", he asked in return. "A lot! You envy Logan because he has what you want!"

His opposite snorted. "I don't envy animals…."

Hank ignored it. "You do!", he gave back. "He and Jean are not only happy with each other, you're also pissed because Jean is expecting _his_ children instead of yours!" Scott breathed heavily because of his growing anger. "Come over it, Scott!" Hank said more calmly. "You say you love her…then let Jean be happy…"

Furiously, Scott turned around and left. Hank could only shake his head and sighed. Finally, Peter and he went on with their work, knowing that it would take them much longer now to finish it…

XXX

"Oh my gosh! Isn't that cute?", Jubilee shrieked and pulled an orange-yellow romper suit with little giraffes from a bar full of baby clothing.

"Yeah, kid…as cute as the previous twenty", Logan grunted and turned around to face Jean who was smirking. "Didn't you say Bobby and Rogue!", he asked frustrated.

Jean smiled. "Well, you know her, don't ya? Come one, she's having fun…stop being a sourpuss!"

"Sourpuss, eh?", he asked her and raised an eyebrow. "Exactly because I know her, I'm asking!" He sighed and looked around, noticing every spot of the store. Somehow he felt completely lost in the middle of so many pregnant women, toys, changing tables, cots, baby clothes… And over-excited teenage girls, he added as he looked at Jubilee, who had grabbed the next two romper suit. Logan rolled his eyes while he switched his look to Bobby and Rogue. Both of them seemed to enjoy going through all the baby stuff. The he watched Jean again who went through the clothes next to him lost in thoughts. He had to smile. Even if he felt lost, he felt still happy…

Suddenly, Jubilee grabbed his hand and pulled him over to the shelves with cuddly toys. "Come on, you gotta help me out here!" she said and let go off him. When she looked up into his stressed face, she pouted. "Ah, come on, Wolvie…you ain't no fun today! I still need something cute for Rogue's baby…"

He shrugged. "Don't ya have enough selection here?", he asked her and folded his arms in front of his chest.

She gave him the same look. "Come on! Stop sulking and be of help!"

"I'm not sulking!", Logan grunted. After he realized that Jubilee wouldn't stop annoying him before he picked something out of the shelves, he gave in sighting. "'Kay…!" With a raised eyebrow he went through the stuff next to him, before he held something out to her. "Here!"

The girl looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "You want me to give Rogue's baby a Spiderman action figure…!"

"'Kay, hold on!", Logan grunted and put the figure back. Finally, he grabbed something else. "Better!", he asked frustrated.

"A carebear?", she eyed it curiously. "Yeah, that's one's cute!" Jubilee smiled at him. Logan just wanted to return to Jean, when she stopped him. "Hey, mister! We're not finished here, yet!"

"Jesus, Jubes! You got your bear, so what else do you want!", Logan asked annoyed. Gosh, he hoped his kids wouldn't be like that…

"You gonna have two kids soon, remember? So,…we need to find two more!", she said grinning widely at him. She didn't know why, but she loved to annoy him.

Logan snorted and narrowed his eyes. Finally, he grabbed another blue and green carebear and held them out to her, but she shook her head. "What! What's wrong with them?"

"Nothing! I only wanted YOU to pick something for YA kids!", she winked. "I already got something for them…"

With that she joined Rogue and Bobby again, leaving Logan only more frustrated than he already was. He looked down at the two bears in his hands, before he shook his head and sighed. Thank God, no one of the Brotherhood could see him just now… Especially 'Ro and Hank would have loved to see the strong Wolverine standing in the middle of pregnant women with two bears in his hands… He walked over to Jean who had finished looking for baby clothes and was now looking at beds. Logan sneaked up to her and placed a kiss on her neck, which calmed him down again. "Got everything?"

Jean smiled up at him. "We still need two beds and a changing table…" Her eyes caught the bears in his hands. "They're cute!"

Logan put them into the cart and took care of it again. "Yeah,…and Jubes stays at home from now on!"

She smirked at him. "What do you think about these two ones?", she asked him and pointed to two wooden, white painted baby beds. One had blue bed linen with sleeping bears on it, while the second had yellow ones. Giraffes and elephants were smiling from it.

"Fine with me!", he said after taking a closer look at them. "What about that changing table and the small bathtub over there?"

Jean turned around. Finally, she saw what he meant. "Yeah,…"

"Do we got everything then?", Logan asked her while watching to the other three mutants, who were eyeing a small bed closely. Of course, Jubilee wanted to talk them into the yellow one. He smirked. That girl really was crazy…

"I think so", Jean said after she had went through her list. "Do you think they deliver all the stuff?"

Logan shrugged. "We could also leave Jubes here…", he said smirking and earned a look from her. "I'll go and ask. What about eating something?"

Jean took her eyes from the list she'd made at home again. "Oh, you can go and eat something with Bobby. We'll meet there!"

Confused he looked at her. "What about you and the girls?"

She smiled mysteriously. "You'll see!"

XXX

Nearly two hours later, Logan and Bobby were still sitting in the Pizza Hut restaurant and waited for them. After everything had been settled with the owner of the store and after the guy had promised them to deliver everything within the next two days, the girls had handed over the bags to the guys. Then they'd headed off to an unknown place within the mall. Both men had ordered something to eat and drink and waited for their return…

Logan took another sip from his third coke, while Bobby was staring out of the window, turning the empty glass within his hands. The grown watched him smirking. It was in his nature to wait, but apparently not in Bobby's. Nevertheless, even Logan asked himself where the girls were…

"What are they doing so long?", he heard the boy asking and shrugged.

"Girls stuff, probably…"

"Over two hours!" Bobby turned his head towards Logan and frowned.

"Well, you know woman, pal!" He only smirked.

"You know Jubes, Bobby corrected him and Logan's smirk became even wider. "I bet she's heading from one shop to the next…"

"Probably…", the adult grunted. "So, how's Rogue doing?", he asked after a while.

"Good. Thank God, she doesn't have any problems so far…" Bobby suddenly became serious. "I only hope…", he broke off while putting down his glass.

Logan knew what the boy wanted to say. "Don't worry! I'm pretty sure that she can touch the child…"

"Yeah, I hope so…"

"What's it gonna be?", Logan asked and drank a bit again. This conversation reminded him a lot of their previous one, before Striker had attacked them. A lot had changed since then…

"Mrs McTaggert said a girl", Bobby smiled.

"Already got a name?"

He shook his head. "We're still discussing it."

"Well, you still got more month than we have…", Logan said smirking.

Bobby looked out of the window again. "What about your twins?"

Logan put the glass down. "Jean wants to be surprised, so we don't know the gender."

"Any names already?"

"Nope", he shook his head. "We haven't talked about it, yet…"

"It's about time!", Bobby said as suddenly his eyes widened.

Logan frowned. "What? What's wrong!", he asked worriedly and turned around. His chin dropped, too…

"What are you staring at, Wolvie?", Jubes asked, but he didn't even take notice of her. His eyes were fixed on Jean who came closer. Jubilee had to laugh. "Guys, you're drooling!"

Bobby still stared at Rogue. He was too surprised to react. Her hair had the same color, but it was way shorter than before. It only reached up to her chin now… Shyly, she looked at him. "You like it?"

He swallowed as his brain finally started to work again. "Yeah! It looks great! I'm just…pretty much surprised…"

Rogue smiled and sat down next to him, while Logan was still staring at Jean. He noticed that several men had turned their head toward the red haired woman with the phoenix necklace around her neck, but he didn't care. She was his mate… Her hair was only shoulder length anymore. The cut itself was a mixture between before Alkali Lake and after it. She smiled at him and he moved aside to so that she could sit down. "Okay?", Jean asked worriedly, but as an answer he only kissed her hungrily, totally forgetting about the people around him.

"See? Drooling!", Jubilee said to Bobby and Rogue who only smiled.

"Love it!2, Logan said between two kissed, before he turned to Jubilee. "And I head that!" She only shrugged. "You wanna eat something?", he asked the girls, but they only shook their heads. "Okay, then lets go!"


	29. Chapter 28

**Changes Chapter 28**

The old warehouse definitely neutralized their advantage. Logan looked around, tried to hear or see anything. But not the slightest sound echoed through the room, which could tell him where exactly the enemy was hiding. His eyes met Storm's. She hid behind a column and also scanned the area. Suddenly, she moved, still limping because of her injured leg. She made her way to him and took cover next to Logan. Her eyes were fixed on the upper level. "Do you sense them?", she asked him, but he could only shook his head.

"Nope…" His headset made a crack and Bobby's voice echoed through it.

"Hey, where are you guys?"

"Downstairs, where are ya?", Logan asked in return, while checking his surroundings again.

"Upper level. Any signs of them?"

"No", Storm said.

"Here's Scott, Regroup at the front door, now!"

Logan raised an eyebrow. "Are you kidding, bub?" Storm was also frowning. "It's too dangerous to walk through the whole warehouse without knowing where the enemy is…"

"You heard me, Logan!"

"He's right, Scott!", Storm said and looked around again. "It'd be the perfect opportunity for them…"

Scott snorted. "Regroup at the front door!"

"What do you think, Logan?", Bobby asked insecure.

"Who's with ya, kid?", Logan asked him in return, while his eyes were fixed on the upper level.

"Peter. I don't know where the others are…"

"Stay where you are then!", Logan grunted and looked around the corner. "We're coming to get ya!"

"Since when are you in command here!", Scott's voice echoed angrily through the headset. "We're an even easier aim for them if we stick all together!"

Logan only snorted while he took Storm by the hand, advising her to follow him. "It strengthens our defense, bub!"

"Who's responsible for the defense here? Not YOU as I recall it!"

"Scott, leave it!", Storm nearly shouted, since she really began to feel pissed off. "Logan's right!"

They heard Scott cursing for a brief moment before he said "Sure, whatever!". Then the connection went dead. Both mutants carefully headed towards the staircase and climbed up the stairs. Soon, Peter and Bobby came into view. Both were hiding behind several barrels.

"You alright?", Logan asked them and they nodded. "Good! Come on!" He looked at Collossus. "Change into your organic form and cover our back! I'll take care of the front!"

"Okay", Peter said and soon his body was shining silver metallic.

Logan popped his claws and moved towards the next corner. He sniffed. Something was different. "Stay here and take cover!" He turned around, his claws ready to strike and sniffed again. Suddenly, one of the barrels in front of him began to move. With an angry growl, he ran towards it. One claw covering his chest, while the other was above his head. Furiously, he saw how the barrel changed into a blue body. Logan gritted his teeth and a primal scream left his throat, as he rammed his raised claw to the ground with all his strength. Mystique moved quickly aside and he cut the barrel into slices. Quickly, he turned around and punched her with the back of his hand, before he kicked her so hard that she slammed against the opposite wall and hit her head. Growling, Logan jumped at her, claws first. Mystique shook her head slightly. Trying to get rid off the stars in front of her eyes, she shrieked as Wolverine hit her hard and buried his claws deep into her chest. With a growl he pulled them out of her body again and watched her dropping to the ground. He turned his head towards the others and nodded after he'd checked his surroundings again. Storm and the others joined him and they kept on moving…

"Hank?", Storm asked while activating her headset for talking. "Do you read me?"

"Yeah, I do! Where are you guys?", his voice sounded in her ears after a moment.

"We're looking for you and the others. We're you right now?"

"He's close by…", Logan suddenly said sniffing. Finally, he looked up. "There!" He pointed towards the ceiling.

Storm looked up and saw Hank hanging head first from it. "Hank, look down!"

Within a second, he landed next to them. "Nice job over there, Wolverine!", he smirked.

"Don't mention it!", Logan grunted, still looking out for new threats.

"So you knew where we were!", Storm said angrily.

"Not really", Hank corrected her and got into position next to her. "I saw Wolverine fighting and then something on the other side caught my attention…"

A crash made them turn around. "Must have been me!", Juggernaut smiled as the wall fell into pieced.

"Watch out!", Logan told the others and positioned himself with Collossus at the front while Hank was covering Storm's and Iceman's back.

"Guys, we need help on the upper level!", Storm said into the speaker and watched Juggernaut running towards them with full speed. Logan growled and came to meet him as fast as he could, his claws ready to strike. Collossus followed him a few steps behind. Juggernaut laughed madly before he bent his head down, his steps echoing from the walls. Logan remembered the moved Nightcrawler had taught him and gained speed before he jumped. In the air he made a 180° turn, before he took hold of Juggernaut, thrusting his claws into his back. The mutant underneath him screamed but kept on running unstoppable towards the others. Collossus already prepared himself for the attack. With all his strength he tried to stop the giant mutant in front of him, but before he could even took hold of him, he crashed into a wall.

"Jump aside!", Logan yelled and buried his claws as deep as he could into the back of Juggernaut. While Hank took hold of Storm and jumped aside with her, Iceman sent a beam to the ground, causing it to freeze immediately and turned it into an ice rink. One last time, Logan cut into the flesh, before he grabbed the helmet and pulled at it with all his strength. As he got a good grip on it, he jumped off the giant mutant and landed on the floor heavily breathing and sweating, while Juggernaut shrieked as he began to stumble on the ice rink. Soon, he landed on his chest and hit his jaw, before he smashed into the wall. Everyone paused until they were sure that he wasn't a threat anymore. Logan handed the helmet over to Collossus who squeezed it until it was completely useless. The grown up wiped off the sweat from his face. "Everyone alright?"

"Yeag. No one got hurt!", Hank said.

"Good. At least two more are left, so watch out! Take your defense positions again!" Logan led them into the next room, where Shadowcat was. She ran towards them immediately.

"Pyro has Jubilee!", she told Logan who narrowed his eyes.

"Where's he?"

"He went through that door!" Kitty pointed towards a huge metal double door on the other side of the room. "I already tried, but I can't open it."

Logan headed towards it, followed closely by the others and took a closer look on it. "Hey, Tinmen, can you open it?"

Collossus joined him. "I'll try…", he answered and punched it with all the strength he could come up with. Leaving a dent in it, which became bigger with every punch that followed.

"Try to damage it as good as you can."

"Shall I go through it?", Kitty asked, but Logan hold her back.

"Too dangerous, kid!" He turned around when he heard a noise behind them. Logan growled and relaxed after he noticed that it was Angel who'd dropped Scott to the ground and landed next to them

"Finally arrived, eh?", Logan asked angrily and eyed Cyclops, who ignored him.

"How are we?", the man asked as if nothing had happened.

Storm snorted. "Good. Pyro only caught Jubilee and Magneto hasn't shown up so far… You can call or situation _perfect_!", she gave him an angry look.

"That's all I can do…", Collossus suddenly said. He was completely exhausted and changed into his normal form again.

Scott already had his hand on his visor, when Logan buried one of his claws into the dented door. He felt his claws reappearing on the other side. Thank God, Collossus had been able to make the thick door much thinner. He only asked himself how much he could do here…nevertheless he had to thought about Jubilee and that was what kept him going. With all the might he could come up with, Logan moved his arm upwards, trying to cut the metal open.

"We'll help ya!", Hank said and joined his side. While he grabbed one side of the already cut open hole the claw had left, Collossus changed again and grabbed the other. Both were tugging at the material, while Logan kept on cutting through it. Finally, a piece of the door crashed to the ground, big enough for them to go through it.

"I'd be faster…", Scott grunted.

"Yeah, and you could have injured Jubilee if she'd been on the other side…", Storm only said, before she joined Logan again, leaving Scott boiling with anger.

They walked through the next room, immediately feeling the heat rising. "We're close by…", Iceman said and kept looking around.

"She's there!", Logan suddenly said and pointed towards an oval container. As they approached further, they recognized the girl, who was hammering against the thick, unbreakable glass.

"Damn it!2, Storm cursed and took a closer look at it. "How do we open that thing?"

Suddenly, Logan groaned and everyone turned around to see him gritting his teeth. "He's…here…!", he said in pain, before he crashed against a wall on the upper level and was pinned against it.

Afraid, the remaining X-Men looked around until they saw Pyro standing on a rising on their right, while Magneto approached on the left. Logan watched the scenery heavily breathing. "Damn it!", he cursed since he hadn't smelled neither of them. He looked at the ground closely on which the others were standing, before he turned his eyes towards the two enemies who were one level above the X-Men. He groaned. The voice in the back of his head was telling him that something was seriously wrong here… Magneto was still pinning him to the wall on the same level as the two Brotherhood members were standing, while the others gathered underneath him. "Peter!", Logan yelled. "You've got to change back! Otherwise he can control you, too!"

"Sorry!", Collossus answered and switched back to his normal form.

Suddenly, Magneto raised his free hand and the ground began to move. In an instant, the X-Men were captured in the middle. Before they could even move, Pyro had spread huge flames everywhere. Helplessly, Logan watched how his friends got trapped…

"Okay, keep calm!", Storm said. She had to do something,…but she couldn't come up with anything useful… She knew the kids were afraid…but what could she do?

"Iceman, attack him!", Cyclops sand and pointed towards Pyro who looked down at them with the most arrogant smile they'd ever seen.

"What about Jubes? We should get her out there first!", Bobby protested.

"She's save in there!"

Storm looked up until her eyes met Logan's. She asked herself what he would do… So far he handled every situation perfectly…

"Storm, you attack Magneto, Iceman attacks Pyro. Hank, try to reach the ladder up there!", Scott said and looked at every X-Men.

"Are you kidding!", Beast asked. "The flames are too huge!"

"Okay, freeze them first!", Scott said to Bobby who looked at him in confusion.

"I thought I should take care of him?", he asked and pointed towards Pyro.

"Watch out!", Logan suddenly yelled and they barely evaded the huge flame, which Pyro had sent into their direction. Cursing, he fixed his eyes on the others. "Damn it, get Jubilee out of that thing!", he yelled angrily. "She's choking to death in there!"

"She's save in there!", Cyclops shot back at him.

"No, Logan is right! She isn't getting any air in there", Hank said worriedly and tried to figure out how he could open the container quickly.

"Damn…", Cyclops cursed.

"Do something!", Storm shouted at him. "You wanted to be the leader, so be one!"

Kitty had her hands on the glass, while she was watching her friend in fear. Bobby shielded another attack of Pyro, before he shot an ice beam back at him. "Could someone please come up with something?"

Logan groaned in pain as his bones were torn apart by Magneto. He met Storm's eyes, noticed how lost she was. The sweat was running down his face, while his mind was thinking… An angry growl escaped his throat as his eyes caught Jubille, who'd already dropped to her knees. "Damn it, Cyke, what are you doing you idiot?", he yelled when he saw that Scott had his hands on his visor. "You gonna kill here you freak!"

"Are you nuts?", Storm shrieked and pushed Scott's hand away.

"We've got to get her out of there, storm. If I blast away the…". He said harshly, but was cut off by her.

"Oh, really?", she shot back sarcastically. "I thought she's _safe_ in there…!"

"Guys, do something!", Bobby suddenly screamed. "I can't stop him anymore!"

Logan snorted and the anger rose within him. If he could only move his arms, he would have cut Cyclops into pieces. He ignored the pain which Magneto caused him to endure and narrowed his eyes. He had to do something… "Furball, go help Collossus to smash that thing and get Jubes out of there! Storm, help Iceman against Pyro. Kitty!", Logan yelled and the girl looked up. "Go through the fire and…"

"Are you out of your mind?", Scott asked furiously.

"You can do it! Trust me!", he continued and ignored Cyclops completely. "Go and try to get your hands on Magneto's helmet!"

"And what am I supposed to do, smart ass?", Cyclops demanded to know angrily. God, how he hated this guy, he thought furiously.

"Just shut up and learn!", Logan yelled back.

Kitty stared into the fire. She's never tried it before… What if she would burn to ashes? Her skin was already burning like hell… She turned around and saw how Storm flew upwards, while Iceman kept Pyro busy, who was shooting heavy flames at them. She saw how Jubilee tried to breathe inside of the container, how she covered her ears and closed her eyes in pain, since Collossus desperately punched against it. Logan trusted her…up to now he'd right… With one last look at him, she ran towards the flames and disappeared.

Logan had his eyes fixed on Magneto, while the noise of the fight underneath them echoed through the room.

"Storm, help me!", Bobby suddenly shouted as flamed hit him hard. Immediately, he changed into his ice form to protect himself.

Storm's eyes glowed white in anger and she attacked Pyro with a whirlwind. "No!", she shrieked, as the storm caught fire and was sent directly back towards her. Bobby reacted immediately. While his hands pointed to the ground, he created an ice rink in the air on which he jumped. Being able to fly with it through the air, he reached her just in time and froze the whirlwind. "Thanks!", she said breathlessly. He smiled at her and with a 180° turn in the air, he glided on his ice rink towards Pyro.

Logan still had his eyes on Magneto. The pain was unbearable and his breathe and heart rate were completely out of control. Still he waited and did his best to ignore it… All of a sudden, two arms appeared through the all right behind the master of magnetism and grabbed his helmet. Surprised, Magneto turned around, letting go of Logan for a second.

One second too long, since the Wolverine had reacted immediately and attacked him with a loud primal scream. Blood splattered against the wall and the leader of the Brotherhood dropped lifelessly to the ground. Heavily breathing, Logan calmed down and took control Wolverine again. He waited for Kitty to reappear. "You alright, kid?"

"Yeah…", the girl nodded, still not being able to realize what just had happened.

He turned his head towards Pyro. Storm and Iceman had managed to trap him in a corner of the room and kept on attacking him. Logan retracted his claws. "Come here, kid!", he said and took Kitty into his arms. She took hold of him with her hands as she realized what he wanted to do. He jumped off the rising right into the fire, just to step out of it a second later. He dropped the girl to the ground and joined Hank and Collossus, who were still working on the container.

Growling, Logan hit his claws against the glass, but left three scratches on it only. The heat within the room became unbearable. Scott looked up to the ceiling, following the pipes which were running there, until he found the right one. While he worked on his visor, Logan cut into the material of the container and sliced it open. Noticing that it wasn't enough, he pushed even harder, ignoring the loud crack in his shoulder as he dislocated it again. His suit looked like as if he had hit a shredder, tearing even more as he pushed his arm muscles to their maximum. With his free hand, Logan pulled Jubilee out of it, who immediately wrapped her arms around him and started to sob heavily. He turned his heads towards the others, while holding her tight. Storm and Iceman had finally managed to knock out Pyro and landed next to him, while Hank and Peter breathed heavily. They winced shortly as Cyclops shot a beam towards the ceiling.

Logan looked up frowning, narrowing his eyes, while he tried to soothe Jubilee. Suddenly, hi eyes widened as he realized that his team mate had hit the wrong pipe accidentally. In slow motion, Logan saw the yellow liquid falling down right towards the fire.

"Damn!", Scott cursed as he realized his mistake.

As the first drop hit the flames, which still surrounded them, they shot high into the air, blew up even more pipes at the ceiling, causing them to mix their liquids into a deadly and explosive substance. As the flames rushed towards the X-Men, Logan quickly looked toward the right corner and yelled "End simulation!" Heavily breathing, they watched as the flames hit them. Suddenly, they became blue and turned into small squares, before they disappeared completely…

Storm swallowed hard and, as the others, tried to calm her racing heart. Jubilee still clung to Logan, who shot deadly looks at Scott. "Congrats, Cyke…", he growled angrily. "You just killed us all!"

**Sorry but it took me a bit longer to type up this time. I still had some stuff to do for college. Thanks for all the nice reviews again! I still have to figure out who number 100 was. Hope you liked this chapter. I said the next one will be shocking, but had to change it, since the next one is quiet long again. So, I think Chapter 30 will end with the cliffie… ; ) Hope you enjoyed reading! See ya!**


	30. Chapter 29

**Changes Chapter 29**

Jean sighed and bent her head down after the Dangerroom session was over. She had seen everything, heard everything…but still she couldn't believe it. She turned around to face the Professor who sat with his fingers folded in his wheelchair and was deep in thoughts in the Control room. She wanted to say something, but somehow she couldn't… If this hadn't been a simulation only…everyone would have been dead by now… well, everyone except Logan maybe…, she thought and looked down to the Dangerroom again. Her eyes became sad when she saw how the X-Men argued with each other. She almost felt their anger against Scott all the way up to where she was sitting.

"Jean…", Charles suddenly said and she turned her head again. "What do you think?"

She shook her head. "I don't know what to think, honestly… I can't even believe it!" Jean swallowed and looked down again. "Something like that…has never happened before…"

"I know…", he answered. "And I think you've noticed where the problem was?"

Sadly, she slowly nodded her head. "Scott…"

Charles came closer until he was right next to her. Gently, he laid his hand on hers. "The two of you have to settle things with him… His hate against Logan would have killed them during a real battle…" He stared at the woman who was in advanced stage of pregnancy now completely serious.

"I know…", she sighed. "Logan already tried to get out of Scott's way, but…" She shook her head. "I doubt that Scott will ever accept it." Desperately, she looked at her opposite. "I'm even worried that he'll ever accept our children in his class…if he will even be able to look at them…"

Charles leant back and took a closer look on her. He had noticed the weird undertone… Suddenly, it hit him. "You want to leave?"

Jean smiled sadly. "This is my home… But I doubt I can keep Logan from hurting Scott forever…not if things go on like this…" She turned her head towards Logan who was arguing with Scott right now. "But I doubt that we would ever be safe anywhere outside the mansion… Not with Magneto knowing about us…"

He nodded. "Let's meet them in my office. We definitely have a lot of things to discuss." He pushed a button and spoke into the microphone.

XXX

Only few minutes later, they were gathered in Professor X's office. The tension between the mutants in the room couldn't be denied. Charles noticed that Logan and Jean sat on the sofa, while Scott sat on a chair on the opposite side of them. The others stood more closely to Logan… He sighed. "As you all have noticed", Charles began and looked to and fro between them. "…this mission would have ended deadly for nearly all of you, if it had been a real one… The tension and anger between all of you can't be denied… But I need you to realize that we can't fail during a real battle!" He looked at them with a piercing gaze. "Too many lives depend on us! And I am not only talking about the students at school here…"

Most of the mutants looked down, but still they felt the anger becoming stronger within them. "We wouldn't have failed if our _leader_…", Storm looked towards Scott. "…had done his job correctly!"

"I made a mistake at the very end, I know that!", Scott shot back while clenching his fists.

"You made mistakes through out the whole mission, Scott!", she gave back while getting up. "You didn't know what to do, which orders to give… If Logan hadn't taken over the leadership, we would have been either dead way earlier or would have lost teammates!"

He snorted. "Why did I know that you'd say that part with _him_…"

"Because she's right", Bobby said loudly. "Jubilee would have been dead, because first you wanted her to stay in that container and afterwards you intended to shoot beams at her…"

"And I still don't understand what had gotten into you when you told us to regroup at the main entrance…", Storm added while folding her arms in front of her chest.

"Damn it, I said I'm sorry!", Scott nearly yelled in anger and got up. "I made mistakes, fine…"

"Mistakes which would have killed us all!", Ororo added coldly and both shot deadly looks at each other. She turned towards the Professor. "I'm sorry, but I'm not willing to follow his leadership during a real battle… I don't trust his judgments anymore, because…"

"Oh, but you trust _him_, don't you!", Scott shot at her while feeling offended and nodded towards Logan, who, as the Professor had noticed, had stayed calm so far. Still, Charles knew that the X-Man was boiling within… Scott shook his head in frustration. He couldn't believe how much had changed during one year…

"At least he's more a team player than you are currently!", Ororo gave back.

"Yeah?", he asked sarcastically and shot a look at Jean. "I wonder why…"

"Scott!", Charles said and hoped that he could calm him down again. "You've been gone for over y year… You don't know all the changes, how the younger X-Men have improved during that time…", he explained calmly. "You might start to train again first,…but the exercise has clearly shown that you're not capable to led them right now…"

Scott snorted and shook his head. "It wasn't my fault that I was gone so long, was it?"

Offended, Jean looked down. She couldn't believe that he'd just attacked her, too. Even if he'd not addressed her directly, she'd noticed the accusing undertone. Suddenly, she felt how Logan clenched his fists. "Don't…, please!", she whispered, but he still stared at the man on the other side of the room as if he was already seizing him up for a coffin…

Charles had sighed and supported his arms on the large table. "Jean is the second in command after Scott…", he began and noticed that Logan's eyes had switched to him warningly. "…since she can't take part into battles at the moment and, as far as I know, doesn't feel ready for it, Storm is the next in command."

Storm shook her head. "I won't lead them…"

"Why not? You did it before…", Charles asked her surprised.

"I did too many mistakes… And during the training mission, I felt lost when we got trapped in that room. I didn't know what to do… The same happened to me on Alcatraz…", she explained.

Charles sighed. He'd known that it would come to that point some day. He knew what she was up to…, nevertheless, he asked her. "So what do you suggest?"

Storm put her hands to her hips. "We need a strong leader, someone who's experiences and can teach us and handle situations… Someone we can depend on!" Slowly, she turned around. "He should do it!"

"Me! Are ya drunk?" Logan raised an eyebrow at her. He stared at her and the others, since everyone was looking at him. She'd to be joking…

"I think Logan should lead us from now on", Ororo said again to the Professor, being completely serious.

Charles nodded, while Scott gave a derisive laugh. "Logan, what do you think?"

"Not gonna happen!", Logan only grunted.

"Why not!", Storm asked him and also the other were staring at him in surprise. "You've proven that you can easily do it… It was you who lead us down there!" She looked at him uncomprehendingly.

He shook his head. "I said no!"

"Logan, only because of you we'd still be alive if Scott hadn't intervened…", Hank said, but Logan only shook his head. Frustrated, Beast jumped out of his chair. "It was YOU who beat most members of the Brotherhood all by himself. YOU lead us safely and even took over the defense strategies… So why not!"

"I said no, damn it!", Logan grunted and got up to look out of the window. His hands deeply buried into his pockets. Jean tried to talk to him mentally, but it didn't work. Frustrated she looked down on her hands.

"We have to accept his decision…", Charles said to the others who were still in some kind of slight shock. They'd believed he would do it. They wanted him to do it…

"No, I'm not accepting this!", Storm suddenly said and shook her head in disagreement. "Logan, I know we've distrusted you after Mystique…"

"Jesus, Storm!", Logan said loudly and looked at her. "This has nothing to do with it!"

"Then what is it?", she asked since she didn't understand his cold attitude.

"I'm not a leader…", he growled and turned around again.

Scott smirked. "Is that your interpretation of responsibility? I thought you _changed_ so much…and that you're someone they can _depend_ on…"

"Scott!", Jean said insistently. "Leave it!"

"Why? It's the truth!", he shot back. "You told me he changed and you call him someone you can depend on and what is he doing? He leaves you alone! Because he is a loner who only thinks about himself! That's why!", he said angrily before he turned to Jean. "And he will do the same to you!"

"Just shut up, will ya?", Hank hissed at him, since he had noticed how Logan has tensed his muscles. He only waited for the familiar _snikt_…before Logan would slice Scott into pieces. Hank even wondered how his friend could even hold back so much…he himself would have attacked his opposite by now.

"Okay, that's it!", Jubilee said and got up. "Who's for Logan to be our new leader?", she asked and raised her hand. It didn't take long and Storm raised it, followed by Rogue, Bobby, Peter, Hank and Kitty. Logan watched them in the mirage of the window and saw that Warren raised his hand, too. He sighed. Why couldn't they just leave it?

"Jean?". Storm asked and looked at her frowning.

"it is his decision…we can't make him do it if he doesn't want to…", she answered calmly without looking at Storm.

"Besides this", Hank said. "Would you follow him during a battle?"

"Of course!", she said, while looking at Logan who shook his head. She felt his tension becoming stronger within him.

"Scott?", Charles asked even if he already knew the answer. "What about you?" He looked at his former student waiting for an answer, but Scott refused to react…

Logan kept on looking out of the window, staring at the pond where he had spent lots of time with Jean. His arms were folded in front of his chest, while his heart was racing. He didn't know why, but he felt scared…

"Why do you refuse to accept it?", Jeans voice suddenly echoed in his head.

He caught her eyes in the window. "Because I can't lead them."

"Why? You already did and you did a great job…"

"Because I had to do it…", he answered mentally. "I'm not a leader, Jean. I can't do it! I'm not even capable of following orders myself, so how should I lead others?"

Sadly, she broke eye contact for a moment, before she looked at him again. "They trust you, Logan!", he heard her suddenly say aloud and turned his head in surprise. "Look at them! They trust you! They look up to you!" She searched for a sign in his eyes, anything that could tell her precisely what he was thinking. Logan noticed that everyone was staring at him again. "We need a strong leader, Logan… Someone who is capable of pushing us if necessary. It was you who gave the orders down there, I've seen it! You made them fight again, because you acted like a leader after you realized that Scott was wrong…" Jean looked at him pleadingly, ignoring Scott's shocked look at her. "Please, Logan…if not you, who else?"

"Logan you did it on Alcatraz, too!", Storm suddenly said. "You said we would stand together…"

"And you've seen where it had led us, haven't ya?", Logan said angrily.

"Yeah…", she nodded challenging. "We've won!"

"At what costs, Storm?", he shot back loudly and turned his head away.

He took a deep breath and thought about Jean's words. He couldn't deal with so much responsibility… He hated it. It wasn't in his nature to be the leader, it just didn't fit… What if he failed again? What if he was responsible for someone dying again? He didn't want to experience this feeling again…

"She was right, you did it in Alcatraz, too…", the voice at the back of his head said.

"That was different… I had to!", he thought back.

"You did it down there, too…", the voice echoed.

"Yeah, because I HAD TO!", Logan answered again. He ran a hand through his hair and looked at the pond again, while he also noticed the students who were playing on the outside. No, he couldn't do it…it was too much responsibility for him to handle… "You're going to be a father of twins soon, pal!", the voice said again. "Time to deal with being responsible for something!" Logan knew that the voice was right…but still…

"What are you afraid of?", Jean asked him mentally again.

"You already know it…", he thought back. "That I fail…"

"I can't fight, Logan…neither can Rogue… So who do you think should protect _our_ children if not you? You can do it! I know that…" She looked at him pleadingly, knowing that he noticed it.

"Logan, please…", Rogue suddenly said begging. "You protected us all alone back then when Stryker attacked us… Without you, we would be dead now…"

Logan sighed again, knowing that everyone was still staring at him, waiting for a final answer. He also knew that they were right with the things they said before…. "Fine…", he finally grunted.

Charles smiled. "Then it is settled."

"So it seems…", Logan said and returned to Jean's side who kissed him on the cheek. "But don't even dare to think that I give a damn about your complaints if Wolverine shows up!"

"That would be all for now…", the Professor said and looked at the X-Men smiling. "Go and get some rest."

They got up and prepared to leave. "Hey, Logan…", Hank said and laid a hand on the other mutants shoulder who turned around. "Congrats!", he said.

"Don't mention it!", Logan growled still feeling pissed.

"By the way, do you know how to plaster walls?" His opposite gave him his best _are-you-kidding-look_. "We fixed your wall as good as we could, but we still need to plaster it…"

"Dunno…", Logan shook his head while Jean took hold of his hand. "Never done it before…"

"Me neither…", Hank said.

"Well, then let's try it!", Logan said smirking. He could only destroy the wall completely, so who cares… Hank had to laugh and together they left the room.

Scott just wanted to walk past them as the voice of the Professor sounded. "Scott, please wait! I need to speak with you in private."

The man sighed and watched how the others left and closed the door behind them. Charles came closer and looked at him closely. "What were you thinking, he asked him, since he still couldn't believe it. "You never made so many mistakes…"

"I know…", Scott said barely audible.

Charles sighed. "Look, I know the situation with Jean and you is very difficult for you…" He didn't break eye contact. "But your hate of Logan would have killed them all during a real mission… You have to talk with them!"

Scott shook his head, while he put his hands to his hips. "I can't talk with him!"

"They at least with Jean!", Charles requested and looked at him piercingly.

XXX

A few days later, Jean walked down the corridor on her way to her temporary room. Lost in thoughts, she looked at the new ultrasound pictures. Moira had confirmed her worries that she might give birth way earlier than planned… Her feelings hadn't betrayed her… She looked up when she heard Logan's voice. She watched Hank and him plastering the wall on the outside of their old room. After days of trying to finish it from the inside, they'd finally managed to repair it properly. Jean smiled at them when they looked up, putting the pictures into her pocket. "Hey guys…", she greeted them and stopped.

"Already back?", Logan asked her and got up from the ground, his face dirty from working.

"Yeah…", she said smiling, while wiping off the dirt from his cheeks gently.

"And?", he asked her softly and watched her doing it.

"…everything's fine…", Jean said without looking at him. "Are you done here?"

Logan turned and faced the wall. "Nearly…"

"We still need to do a bit more on it. But I think we'll be done in about 15 minutes…", Hank said smiling.

"Okay…", Jean said and gave Logan a kiss on the now clean cheek. "I'll go and shower. See ya later!"

"Hey!", Logan said urgently. She turned and saw him smirking, while his eyes had this special shine in them. "I could probably think about a good reason for ya to wait fifteen more minutes…at least if you want to have a cleaned back…" She immediately smiled before she walked down the corridor. Logan turned around to help Hank again.

"You are so lucky…", the blue man said and shook his head in disbelief. Suddenly, he noticed that Logan had become completely serious again. "What's wrong?"

"Being so lucky is the problem…", his opposite grunted.

Hank frowned. "What do you mean?"

Logan kept on working on the wall. He didn't turn to look at him. "Lucky things never happened to me…"

"Well,…especially then you should be happy…"

Logan let the tool sink to the ground. Finally, he looked at Hank. "If they did,…they never lasted long…"

Hank nodded in understanding as he realized what his opposite meant. "So,…you're worried?"

The other man paid attention to his work again and shrugged. "Dunno…maybe it's nothing…"


	31. Chapter 30

**Changes Chapter 30**

She couldn't tell how long she already stood in front of the door. Her heart was racing in her chest and she couldn't ignore the lump in her throat. Timid, she raised her hand and knocked at the door. After it, she even felt more nervous than before…

It didn't take long until the door was opened and a man with red glasses came into view. "Jean…", Scott said in surprise and noticed that he stared at her. He felt his heart kicking into high gear immediately…she was too damn beautiful…

She made sure no one saw her. "Can I come in?"

"Sure…", he said and stepped aside, watching her stepping into his room. He closed the door and joined her…

XXX

"Hey…"

Logan turned around and saw Storm smiling down at him. "Hey ya, back!"

She sat down on the large sofa next to him. The TV room was surprisingly completely deserted at this hour. "All alone?"

"Yeah…", he said and handed over a small bowl full of M&M's.

"Thanks", Storm said and took some from it. "I always thought you hated sweets?"

"Except those ones…"

Frowning, she looked at him. Something wasn't right; she could really sense it… "What's bothering you?"

Logan swallowed another M&M. "Nothing."

She sighed. "Come on, Logan! It's written on your forehead that something isn't right!" She eyed him suspiciously from the side and suddenly saw him turning towards her. Instinctively, she took his hand, ignoring the strange look he gave her. "What's wrong?", she asked softly.

"I don't know…", Logan finally said. He paused for a brief moment and stared at the bowl, before he sighed. He knew Storm; she wouldn't give up before he talked to her. "…my senses are warning me…"

Ororo nodded. "Maybe you're just getting nervous because of the birth…"

He shook his head. "No…"

She smiled at him. "You don't need to feel embarrassed, Logan… It's something even you men won't forget!"

"It's not because of that, 'Ro…" He looked at her directly and she noticed the weird expression in his eyes immediately.

"What then?", she asked calmly. "Is something wrong with Jean?"

"I don't know…" He lowered his gaze. "When I'm close to her…my senses crack…"

"Crack?", she asked frowning without breaking eye contact. She began to feel really worried. If it had such a great impact on him…then it was serious…

"Usually, it only happens if something's about to happen…"

"You mean…as a warning sign?"

"Yeah, something like that…" He nodded, while he still looked down.

Storm bent forward. "So you mean…you think something's about to happen to Jean?", she asked frowning while her heart started to beat faster.

Logan shook his head and leant back again. He ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know, 'Ro…maybe it's nothing…"

She suddenly felt very worries. Usually, that's what she had learned very quickly about him, was his warning system because of his heightened senses always right… "Logan,…you've never been wrong so…"

"I know!", he cut her off. "I'd believe that I'm wrong, but…" He shook his head again and sighed. He could not even tell why he was doing a heart-to-heart talk with her… Logan hated them…

"But?", she asked since he had stopped in the middle of a sentence.

"…even Wolverine's afraid…", Logan said after a while and looked at her. "…and that's a thing which _never_ happens…"

"Because he knows no fear…", Storm noticed calmly.

"Exactly!"

XXX

"So that's why you're here…", Scott said and folded his arms in front of his chest, while he looked down at Jean who was sitting on his bed.

"Sure…",s he answered frowning and asked herself what he thought was the reason she'd come to him.

"Did _he_ sent you?", he asked her coldly.

Jean sighed. "No… I'm here because I'm tired of it, Scott. It can't go on like this…"

He only nodded slowly, but she knew he didn't do it because of understanding her. "So you want me to accept it?", he asked coldly. "Just like that?"

"I can't make you accept it… But I hope you can someday…", she said softly and looked at him pleadingly.

"How, Jean? How!", Scott asked more harshly. His eyes were staring at her. "If I only think about him touching you…" He broke off because he became too furious. "You're not him!", he reminded himself and tried to calm down again.

"I'm sorry, Scott…", she said calmly. "I didn't mean to hurt you, but…"

"But you did!"

Jean looked up at him. This was even harder then she thought it would be. "I'm sorry!"

Scott sighed and ran a hand through his hair, while one hand remained on his hip. "Why him, Jean? Why?", he asked in despair. "We wanted to marry someday, to have children… And now…", he broke off again and shook his head while looking down. "I always thought we were happy with each other…that you loved me as much as I love you…"

"I do love you, Scott", Jean began and stood up, but before she could continue, he had stepped closer and took her hands in his.

"Then why are you staying with him!", he asked insistently.

"Because I love him…", she said calmly. "I love you as a friend,…but I love with my heart…" She swallowed hard, while her heart was pounding strongly in her chest. She knew that she had just hurt him even more.

He let go off her immediately. "He's an animal, Jean! Animals can't _love_… He's a loner, not someone who can provide you with a house and a picket fence…"

"He's NOT an animal, Scott!", Jean said angrily. "Stop calling him that! You don't even know him!"

"Damn it, Jean, you've seen his berserker side… He's running on instincts, so he IS an animal…" Scott saw her eyes changing. The warmth was gone…now she looked at him with cold and warning eyes.

"You're talking about my partner and the father of my children here! How do you even dare to judge him like that!" Here eyes glowed orange for a very brief moment and she had to blink.

"I'm not judging him. I'm only saying the truth, Jean. But somehow everyone doesn't want to realize it!", he gave back as angry as she was.

She frowned, since she'd heard the strange undertone. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean?", he asked in return and had to laugh shortly. "Since when is he everyone's darling? A team player, the big carer?", Scott asked her. "Before that he didn't give a damn about anything! And all of a sudden, everyone wants him to be the new leader? What comes next? Headmaster!" He paused for a brief moment. "I really don't get it. I've met guys like him before and they _never_ change…so how come that everyone's in love with him…?"

"Because he _did_ change!", Jean answered and looked at him piercingly. "You have no idea what he'd been though after he had to kill me…"

"HE killed you!", Scott nearly shouted in disbelief. He let out a deep breath. He couldn't believe it…it just made his theory look perfect. Outraged, he moved around, shaking his head and breathing hard. "I don't believe it…"

"Wait!", she said deciding. "He had to kill me, Scott! I wanted him to kill me. Logan had tried everything to help me, but I was unstoppable… I wanted to kill everyone and everything on this planet. So he had no other choice!" Jean took a deep breath as the memories returned to her. "And he had to pay in the hardest way for saving me…" Tears filled her eyes as she recalled what Rogue had told her about Logan's behavior after Alcatraz. It still hurt her like hell… Jean noticed that Scott wanted to say something, but she cut him off. "Logan was the only one who helped me after I returned. The only one who talked to me and could even stand to look at me or even be close to me without being scared to death…"

"Yeah, so that he can finally bed you, probably", Scott said caustic.

Jean narrowed her eyes. "He helped me through it, helped me to learn control, because he is the _only_ one who can understand what it means to share ones body with a demon! You haven't seen me, Scott! You don't know what I am really capable of! He does, because he'd seen how I killed the Professor…" She'd gritted her teeth and clenched her fists in anger. The pictures were burned into her memory forever… She would never forget them. She knew that he was still looking at her. "I killed so many people…and mutants…", Jean continued without breaking eye contact, the pain echoed in her voice. "And I enjoyed it! So if you call him and animal…then I am an animal, too! Far worse than Wolverine could ever be!" Scott looked down and thought about the things she'd said. "If Logan hadn't been there for me around the clock,…I wouldn't be sitting here right now…"

Frowning, he looked up. His heart was racing and he knew that he didn't want to her what she would tell him next. Still, he'd to be sure. "What do you mean…?"

Jean swallowed. Besides Logan, no one knew about this very bad day she'd experienced back then. "I…I tried to kill myself after another outburst…" She looked up again, causing tears to run down her cheeks. "Logan must have sensed it… He'd stopped me at the last moment…"

"God, Jean…", Scott gasped and turned around in shock, while he ran a hand through his hair. He suddenly felt very sick…this had hit him hard, very hard. "What were you thinking!"

"You don't know what it feels like…", she said louder while the fear was mirrored in her eyes. "…to know that you are so powerful that, if you lose control only for a second, you could easily destroy the whole planet at once…"

Embarrassed, Scott looked down. "Right… But, Jean…", he said and came closer again. "You've to understand me, too…"

She nodded slowly and wiped away her tears. "I understand that you feel offended…or jealous… But I'm sick of you attacking him…"

"What else should I do?", he asked her in despair. "I lost you, then I got you back and got killed… And after I returned and thought that we could finally be together again, I get to know that you're with him now…and only a few days later that you're pregnant… Jean,…I feel so unnecessary… Not only when it comes to you, but also the X-Men and the school…" He looked down for a brief moment. "He has everything I had before…to me it appears as if…as if we switched bodies…"

"You're not, Scott!", Jean tried to calm him. "The school and students need you… But with Logan, it is different… It's the first time I feel free, it's the first time that I can be…_me_…"

"What do you mean, Jean?", he asked in confusion and a trace of anger echoed in his voice. "Did I ever suppress you? Did I ever put you into a cage!"

"That's not what meant… But I never was the real me back then, Scott…in every way of living…"

"Good to know that…", Scott snorted in disbelief.

She sighed. "Don't tell me that surprises you."

"No, actually it doesn't…", he said more coldly than he intended to. "You attraction to him was too obvious…"

Jean raised an eyebrow, since she wasn't talking about her relationship to Logan before, but her increasing powers. "And?", she asked, sensing that there was way more behind his words than he actually said.

Scott smirked and shook his head, while he folded his arms in front of his chest. "You've no idea how often I asked myself why you feel so attracted to him. How often I waited for you to come to me and tell me that you betrayed me…"

Jean gave a derisive laugh in disbelief and turned away. "You trusted me _that_ much?", she asked him outraged. "You really thought that I was capable of betraying you!"

"Come on, Jean!", Scott shot back more loudly. "Don't tell me that the two of you have never kissed at least!" Immediately she blushed. He stared at her. "I knew it!", was all he could say. "How often? Or did you even go further?", he asked her angrily and offended.

"Once…", she admitted truthfully. "And it was only a kiss…nothing more!"

"That's already enough…", he gave back.

Jean sighed. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to calm him today, she walked towards the door. As her hand reached the doorknob, she paused. "I'm not the Jean anymore you knew before, Scott. I changed. A lot!", she said calmly. "I love him and he loves me… I'm happy for the first time since my return. With him! So, please, stop attacking him, Scott! I can't hold Logan back forever if you keep on provoking him…"

With that she left him alone just to bump into a surprised looking Logan on the corridor. Jean looked at him in shock and her heart kicked into high gear…she could only guess what he was thinking. "The Professor wanted me to talk to him…", she explained calmly and cursed herself for blushing like a school girl that was caught doing something forbidden.

"Talking, eh?", he asked in return with a trace of disbelief in his voice.

Jean sighed and ran a hand through her face. "Logan, please… I had enough jealousy for one day…"

He smirked and kissed her neck hungrily. "Yes, ma'am…"

She smiled tiredly. "Where are ya going?"

"To bed…", he answered shortly before he wrapped his arms around her waist. "Wanna come?"

"Best idea I've ever heard", she said and yawned, before she did the same with him and leant her head against his shoulder. Together they walked down the corridor.

"And? Did the talking change anything?", Logan asked when they'd reached their room door.

"No…", Jean said while sitting down on their bed. "I think it only made it worse…" Suddenly, she gave him a look and he knew what it meant.

"I promised ya, Jean!" Logan sat down next to her. "I won't start a fight, …but if he attacks me first…"

"I know...", she said barely audible. "I only keep on feeling that something terrible is about to happen…" She undressed herself and laid down, after she gave him a kiss, leaving him looking at her worriedly. She just had confirmed his growing fear which kept on eating him up from the inside… He got rid off his clothes and laid down next to her. Immediately, she curled up against him, already being asleep. Logan frowned and pulled a strand of hair back behind her ear, before he traced her featured with his finger.

Immediately, he felt it… His senses started to crack, his heart rate kicked into high gear…everything within him was screaming, while Wolverine fought against his cage. He had to get away from her; she was pushing him too far behind his level of control… Cautiously, Logan got up and got dressed again. With one last look on her, he left the room…

**So, that was Chapter 30. I know a lot of dialogue, but I thought that Jean and Scott had to talk finally. I haven't written Chapter 31 so far. So, it can take some time until my next update. Oh, and silly me: In the last chapter I did a mistake, which I recognized yesterday. : ( Of course I meant _are-you-kidding_ and not kissing. LOL I corrected that one and the mistakes part **AngelNoelani420 **told me about. Thanks for that!**

**Thanks for all the nice reviews! Hope you liked this one, too, even if it was lot of talking and no action. And I hope this one doesn't have too many mistakes again. : ( At least Word doesn't show them.**


	32. Chapter 31

**Changes Chapter 31**

Lost in thought, Logan sat in the kitchen staring at the bottle of beer in front of him. He kept on thinking about the feelings which haunted him, about Jean and the children… Something was wrong, something would happen, he was sure of it…, but neither could he tell what or when. He felt frightened, deeply scared that he would lose her again…especially if he couldn't prevent it…

Suddenly, a hand touched his shoulder and Logan nearly jumped.

"Where have you been, boy?", Hank asked him worriedly, since he'd spoken to him several times before. "I was talking to you…"

"Sorry", Logan grunted and noticed that Storm was standing next to Hank.

Hank still had his hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong? What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

"Couldn't sleep", his opposite only said and drank a bit of his beer, which he still held in his hand.

"Come on! You want me to believe that nothing's wrong? You never sit in the kitchen in the middle of the night drinking beer and forget about everything around you…", Hank said. "That's not you, Logan…"

"Well, I just felt like it!", Logan grunted and hoped to please him with it.

Storm immediately knew what was bothering him. "Did it happen again?" He nodded slowly.

"What happened?", Hank asked in confusion and looked to and fro between them.

She only gave him a look. "Nothing", she teased him and pushed Hank towards the door, before she sat down next to Logan. "How bad was it?", she asked calmly and looked at him.

He only shrugged. "A touch was enough…"

"So it's getting worse?"

"Dunno…", Logan had another sip of his beer. For the first time since Jean's return he felt like smoking again. He lighted a cigar and inhaled deeply, before he rested his head in his hand. Storm really felt worried. She hadn't seen him so depressed for over a year now and it hurt her that she couldn't help him.

"Logan…", Ororo said and laid a hand on his arm, which made him raise an eyebrow.

"'Ro…", he said and gave her a look.

"Sorry…", she said embarrassed and pulled her hand away again.

"Look, you and I…", he began, but she interrupted him.

"I know…", Ororo said barely audible without looking at him. "I only want to help you…" She looked up when she heard someone entering the kitchen and noticed that it was Scott, followed by Hank.

"'Ro?", the blue mutant said. "Come on, let's go back!"

"'Kay…", she said and got up. "Will you be alright here?", she asked Logan since she'd noticed the looks both men gave each other.

"Yeah…", he said and put out his cigar. He kept his gaze upon Scott who still stood in the doorway. Something about the way Scott looked at him, told Logan that he probably wouldn't be able to empty his beer tonight. He watched Ororo and Hank leave, while Scott stepped closer and opened the fridge. Logan narrowed his eyes, while they were fixed on the man. Slowly, he had another sip of his beer…

XXX

"Hank", Ororo called after him. "Hank!" She grabbed his hand and made him stop. "Are you crazy? We can't leave just now!"

"Why not? Logan promised Jean that he wouldn't start a fight…"

"Yeah, that's the point…", she said with widened eyes. "Scott didn't promise it and he hates Logan!" She turned her head towards the kitchen door. Up to now everything was calm. "And Logan said he wouldn't _start_ a fight…" She looked at Hank again. "…but not that he wouldn't _defend_ himself! And I know him… He'll hit Scott with everything he got if he has to!"

Hank had watched her closely. "Okay… Then we wait here…", he said and leant against the wall arms folded.

XXX

Scott had taken a seat opposite Logan and was drinking water. A deadly silence and tension was filling the room. While Logan did his best to ignore the man in front of him, Scott's eyes were fixed on him and his mouth was barely more than a line. Logan looked up, only for a very brief moment, and gave Scott a deadly look. He would love to smash the boys head, but he withstood the urge. He had promised it and he would keep it. Logan emptied his bottle and got up without taking any further notice of the other man. Just as he walked past him, Scott put down his bottle. "You know…", he said and Logan immediately narrowed his eyes, even if his opposite was looking at the bottle. "…I still have to thank you for the _she-picked-you-crap_ you've told me back then." He frowned and Scott slowly turned around. "I know that the two of you have kissed back then!"

Logan snorted in annoyance and put his hands to his hips. "She picked you afterwards, so what's the matter?"

"Oh! You're such a bad kisser then?", Scott said sarcastically.

His opposite smirked arrogantly. "You wanna try?"

"No, thanks! I already get sick if I only imagine the two of you!", Scott snorted.

Logan shrugged. "Toilet's over there! Feel free to use it!", he grunted and was about to leave when Scott grabbed his arm. Logan took a very deep breath as his anger grew within him and turned his head very slowly. His nostrils flattered, while he gritted his teeth. "Take your fingers off me, bub!", he hissed threatening.

"No!", his opposite shot back. "We finish this now. Once and for all!"

Logan gave a derisive laugh and shook his head. "And what? The winner gets the first prize? She made her choice, so get over it!" Harshly, he pushed him away. His eyes warned him not to go any further.

Scott smiled. "Oh, did she tame you, _Wolverine_?", he asked him provocative.

Logan's hand grabbed the door-frame hard and he clenched his fist, while his eyes met Storm's frightened ones. She only shook her head, telling him to just go away…

"What are you now?", Scott asked further and folded his arms. "Not an animal, but a lapdog?"

Logan closed his eyes and took very deep breaths. He was on the edge of his patience, his claws were already cutting against his flesh, while Wolverine roared in his cage. He wanted nothing more than to bury his claws into the boy…to silence him once and for all… Logan opened his eyes again. His heart was nearly breaking his chest. He swallowed hard before he turned his head a bit. "Not my problem if you can't keep it up, _boy_!"

Scott narrowed his eyes as his heart began to beat in a deadly rhythm. "What!", he only asked furiously.

Logan faced him now. "You heard me!", he grunted and walked away.

"Logan!", Scott called after him.

He stopped at the doorway. "Oh and, Cyke…", he said and gave him a look. "Stay away from my girl!" With that he turned around again, just to yell in the next second.

"Logan!", Ororo shrieked as she saw him kneeling on the ground and holding his burned and heavily bleeding shoulder. Hank only stared at Scott in shock, whose eyes were shining red through his visor. Storm kneeled down next to her friend who was heavily breathing in pain and had his eyes closed firmly. "God, Logan…", she gasped and took a closer look at his shoulder. Slowly, she pulled his shirt down and saw the hole Cyclops' beam had left. "You need to go to the lab!", she said in shock. "This looks more than bad…"

Slowly, Logan got to his feet and Hank immediately knew that it didn't sound very promising as he saw how his friend pulled his shirt down and threw it furiously to the ground, before he tilted his head and cracked his neck. Hank knew him well enough by now to know, that he only did it when he was more than pissed off.

"Logan!", Ororo said aloud when she noticed the look in his eyes. "Don't!"

Logan had his eyes fixed on Scott who was staring back at him. "You need to get Chuck and tell him that if he's not here within _five_ minutes…", he hissed through gritted teeth. "…I'll cut him into pieces!" With that he walked towards Scott, like a wolf ready to kill his prey. Storm watched him with widened eyes. "Go!", she said to Hank, fear echoing in her voice.

"What? We need to…", he protested, but she hold him back.

"No! You are faster, now go and get the Professor!", she shrieked and heard how Logan pushed a chair out of his way. The sound it made when it crashed against the wall, echoed through the corridor.

"But, 'Ro! I can't leave you here alone!", Hank said scared.

She breathed heavily, while her mind was racing. "I'll get Jean", she suddenly said and took off, followed by him.

Both men breathed hard in the kitchen. Scott slowly moved behind the counter as Logan came closer. He had his eyes fixed on his opposite, knowing how dangerous he would become if he could get his hands on him only for a second…

"So you think that you're better than me, Summers?", Logan hissed furiously. "That you're the _big_ man?"

"I don't only _think _it!", Scott shot back and stopped when he reached the head of the counter, noticing that his opposite did the same on the other side. "You're just an _animal_!", he added scornfully.

"Right…", Logan grunted and cracked his knuckles alternately. He didn't even blinked, while he looked piercingly at his opposite. "I think it's time that the _animal_ teaches you a few lessons…" His voice was alarming low, telling his opposite immediately that he would get hurt a lot…and that he had start something he could never end by himself again…

Scott only smirked despite his inner turmoil. "Oh, really? I doubt that!"

Before he could react, Logan had jumped over the counter and had grabbed his collar. Slowly, he pulled him close, his eyes sparkled threatening. "As you said…", he hissed barely audible. "…we'll finish this…once and for all…"

Scott smirked despite his growing fear. "Go ahead! Stab me!"

Logan snorted scornful. "I don't have to use them to finish you!" A hollow sound echoed through the kitchen as Logan's head hit Scott's…

XXX

Hank breathlessly stopped in front of Xavier's door. Without knocking, he entered and was surprised to find the Professor awake and in the middle of a conversation with Moira. "You have to come down immediately!"

Moira frowned and looked towards Charles who had already turned his wheelchair. "What's wrong?"

"Scott attacked Logan…", Hank only said, but the Professor had already moved past him after he'd said the first two words. Moira gave Hank a short look, before they followed him...

XXX

The air left Scott's lungs at once when he crashed against the fridge. He saw how Logan took a swing and kicked him quickly into the abdomen, before he placed several strong punches into the face of his opposite. Scott bit his lip and breathed hard as the pain rushed through his arms. For a brief moment he had totally forgotten about the adamantium. Logan growled and hit him way harder than Scotthad donebefore. He watched his opposite wipe away the blood from his mouth, before he attacked him again. Easily, Logan evaded the punches and kicks and landed two hits by himself. Scott raised his head heavily breathing, ignoring the stars in front of his eyes. With an angry scream, he threw himself at Logan…

XXX

Storm grabbed Jean's shoulder, feeling completely exhausted from her run. "Jean!", she said aloud. "Jean! You have to wake up!" She shook her slightly.

"What!", the red haired woman mumbled and blinked against the bright light, while she felt a sharp stitch in her abdomen. "What's wrong?", she asked after she'd eased the pain.

"They are killing each other!", Storm said hysterically.

Jean could only frown. She felt dizzy and drunk, as if her brain was still sleeping. "Who?"

"Logan and Scott!", she heard Storm say. "They're killing each other in the kitchen!"

"What!", Jean said in disbelief and her eyes widened.

XXX

Hank headed down the corridor right behind the Professor, while Moira followed right behind him. Suddenly, Charles slowed down. "It's too late…", the blue mutant immediately thought and didn't dare to look.

"Good for you, Chuck…", he heard Logan say and turned his head slowly. "One minute later and there would have been three of him!"

Hank's eyes widened in disbelief. On the floor right in front of them laid Scott, pinned to the ground by one of the bar stools from the kitchen, which made it impossible for him to move. Except he wanted to strangle himself, since the last horizontal wooden stick, which kept the stool together, rested directly on his throat. On the stool was Logan, sitting astride on it, while his arms rested on the back of it. Hank let out a relieving sigh. He could have sworn that one of them would have been either dead or seriously injured…

"What happened here?", Charles demanded to know angrily.

Logan only shrugged. "He attacked me, I defended myself, I won, end of story…"

"The hell you…", Scott tried to say, but had to cough.

Moira noticed the half healed wound on Logan's shoulder. "He shot a beam at you?", she asked in disbelief and walked up to him.

"Is that true, Scott?", Charles asked harshly, showing his anger openly. Logan jumped off the chair and Scott pushed it away angrily, while he covered his throat with his hand. "Scott!", the Professor asked again, while Moira examined Logan's wound.

Logan looked up when Jean approached, closely followed by Storm. "Thank God, they're still alive…", he heard Ororo say.

The Professor was still looking at his former student, who still shot deadly looks at Logan. "Is that what I've taught you over the years?", he asked him harshly. "I can't tell you how disappointed I am…"

Scott snorted. His face and body hurt like hell. He looked first at Charles, before he switched to Jean. "And what about him?", he asked angrily and nodded towards Logan. "Is he the saint again?"

"I told them I wouldn't start a fight! I kept it! But I also said that you would face the consequences if you ever dared to attack me, bub. You did, so be happy that you're still able to breathe!", the other mutant grunted.

Scott clenched his fists and was about to grab Logan's collar, when this one extracted his claws and made him stop. "Don't even _think_ about it, bub!", he growled. "Or I'll change my mind!" With a last warning look,he grabbed his shirt from the ground and headed down the corridor. "And besides!", he said and stopped. "You're out of the team!" With that he was gone, leaving the others in confusion.

Moira pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket and wanted to wipe off the blood from Scott's face, as he pulled away from her harshly. "Leave me alone!", he hissed and took off furiously into the opposite direction.

Charles sighed and ran a hand through his face, while he turned around. Jean looked down, she still couldn't believe it… "You can be proud of Logan after all…", he suddenly said and made her look up.

"What?"

"He managed to control the Wolverine…", Charles said calmly, still feeling disappointed that his X-Men had accepted to Scott's provocations. "…otherwise, I doubt that Scott would still be alive…"

"And I think he only hit Scott if he was hit first…", Moira added, since she had paid attention to the wounds. "He would have looked much worse otherwise…"

"Yes, you could be right…", Charles nodded. "I doubt Scott would've even been able to walk, if Logan had really attacked him… Nevertheless, I can't tolerate this behavior…"

"It wasn't Logan's fault!", Storm said angrily. "Scott wanted him to freak out and he attacked him! You've seen his shoulder! And you should have heard the things Scott has said…"

"I know…", he said soothing. "…and I knew this would happen sooner or later… The tension and hate between them was too obvious and unbearable…"

Hank sighed. "We've to go and look for them before they'll run into each other again…" The Professor nodded in agreement.

"I'll go and talk to Logan…", Jean said barely audible and turned around.

Storm watched her lost in thought. Finally, she followed her down the corridor. "Jean, I…"

"'Ro,…I know you're sorry and I don't blame you anymore!", Jean interrupted her tiredly. "I had some time to think and even if I'm still disappointed and can't understand why you did it, since you knew about the pregnancy,…I also know how hard it is to resist him, if you have feelings for Logan. I've once fallen for the same trick, so I can't blame you. Okay?", she asked her.

Ororo frowned and raised an eyebrow. "Okay…", she said surprised. "But actually…I wanted to ask you if you're okay?"

"Yeah…", Jean said confused. "Why shouldn't I?"

"You would tell us if something was wrong, right?", she asked cautiously, remembering Logan's words.

"Sure…", her opposite said calmly. "Why are you asking?"

Storm waved off. "Forget it!" She smiled shortly. "So,…we're okay again?"

Jean sighed. "Yeah…" She looked up at her smiling vaguely. "You've forgiven me back then…and Logan forgave you, too, so…", she broke off. "And we also still need a godmother for our kids, right?"

Touched and more than surprised, Ororo hugged her. "Thanks!", she whispered happily and had to swallow hard since tears were gathering in her eyes. "And don't be too harsh on him! It really wasn't his fault!"

"I won't…", Jean assured her and they separated.

XXX

She found Logan on the balcony. He leant with his back to her against the border and his arms rested on it, while he looked into the night. Slowly, Jean came closer, knowing that he was already aware of her presence.

"Get inside again… It's too cold for ya…", he grunted without looking at her.

"Well, you could take me into your arms…", she said calmly and he turned around with an eyebrow raised.

"What?", he asked in surprise. "You're not yelling at me? Telling me how stupid I am?"

Jean shook her head. "You didn't start…so you kept your promise…and since you already know how stupid you are…", she answered and wrapped her arms around her body. "But still I'm disappointed…"

He shrugged. "I've warned you…"

"Yeah, I know…and I don't blame you… But I never thought Scott would…" She shook her head and looked at him. "How's your shoulder?"

"Fine…"

Jean slowly came closer and wrapped her arms around him. "You scared me to death…"

Logan pulled her close. "Sorry…" Immediately, his senses cracked again. Gently, he pushed her away.

"What's wrong?", she asked in confusion.

"You'd tell me if something was wrong with you or the cubs, right?", he asked her cautiously straight ahead.

"Sure…"

He had his head lowered a bit, but was still looking into her eyes. "Then why do I keep on feeling that something's wrong?", he said and she looked down. "Jean?"

"It's nothing wrong, Logan…", she finally said calmly. "Moira only said that…"

"That?"

"That I might give birth a bit earlier than planned…", she said truthfully. "That's all…"

Logan looked at her closely, trying to find out if that was the whole truth. "Really?"

"Yeah…that's all…" Jean nodded. "I didn't tell you because I didn't want to worry you even more… You're already nervous enough…" She had to smirk a bit, since she knew that he had tried to hide it from her.

"'Kay…", he said calmly. "I'm sorry…"

"For what?", she asked him.

"That I lost it… I'm sorry that I disappointed you…"

Jean waved off and laid a hand on his cheek, which made him look up. "Forget it. You kept your promise, that's all that counts…" Gently, he kissed her and led her back inside.

XXX

In the meanwhile, Storm and Hank had caught Scott in his room. "What are you doing?", she asked him in shock and watched him packing his stuff.

"What do you think?", Scott asked harshly.

"Come on, Scott! Calm down and sleep one night over it…" Hank tried to calm him and stepped closer. "We need you here…"

"Yeah, sure…", his opposite snorted.

"Scott…", Storm said and stopped him. "Magneto is about to attack us…we _need_ everyone here!"

He smirked. "You've got a _strong_ leader!", he said sarcastically. "Let him handle it!"

XXX

Logan and Jean were walking down the corridor on their way to the staircase. He hadn't taken his eyes from her the whole way down the corridor. His heart was beating triple rhythms and he felt scared. "What's wrong?", he asked her worriedly as she suddenly grimaced in pain and took her hand. "Jeannie?"

She took a deep breath and fought against an upcoming sickness. "I don't know…", she said barely audible. "I'm not feeling so well since 'Ro woke me…"

"Contractions?", he asked her and supported her weight as she trembled.

"No…", she shook her head weakly. "I feel dizzy…like drunk…as if…I've got to vomit…" She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, since the whole surroundings were moving in front of her eyes.

Logan looked around. They were close to the elevator. "I'll take ya to the lab. Come on…" He wrapped his arms around her and helped her towards it. After he was sure that she leant safely against the wall, he let go of her to push the button on the other side. Suddenly, he frowned. Logan sniffed. He smelled blood… Confused, he looked down on him. His wounds we're healed,…it wasn't him. Immediately, he turned his head, suddenly having a very bad feeling and his eyes widened… "Jean…", he said while he was staring at her.

Jean looked up at him, barley able to see anything. She breathed heavily and in slow motion, Logan had to watch her collapsing to the ground. "No!", he yelled and caught her fall. He sank down to his knees, looking down on her feebly body in his arms. "Jean!", he said scared to death and tried to wake her again, but she didn't react. His heart rate kicked into high gear as his fear took over. He looked down and saw the blood which already covered the floor. "No..", he gasped with widened eyes and looked down the corridor to both sides, searching for help… But he was alone, no one could help him. He needed help…, he needed someone to get Moira or Hank… He couldn't leave her alone… Breathing irregularly now, he pulled her close and closed his eyes. There was only one thing he could do…

XXX

"Scott, think about it...", Hank tried again. "Logan was angry because you provoked him! I still can't even understand how you could use your powers against him!" Scott shook his head. He had made his decision. He couldn't stay here anymore…

Suddenly, they winced as a heart-rending "Somebody help!" echoed through the mansion. "Who was that?", Hank asked and turned towards Storm who had walked to the door immediately. She heard the scream again, which sounded even more desperate and frightened than before. Shocked, she recognized the voice. "Logan… It's Logan…", she said with widened eyes.

All of a sudden, Scott dropped his bag and ran past them. "Jean…", he only said and ran down the corridor, following Logan's screams…

**I bet you thought something else when you read the summary, right. ; ) Nah, that will never happen!**

**Thanks for the reviews again! It took me a bit longer to type this time. I hadn't written any further since the last chapter. So I started this chapter on Sunday evening and wrote it till 4:15 a.m. ; ) Yesterday, I started the next chapter and think I should have finished it soon. ; )**

**This cliffie was supposed to be the ending of Chapter 30, but since I needed Jean and Scott to talk, I had to put it in here. Yeah, I know, I'm evil. ; ) Please review and don't kill me! ; ) I promise to update soon!**

**Wow, great, the whole time while typing I waited for a thunderstorm to come up and now there it is. But well, I was faster. ; ) Hope the weather is better by you, guys! See ya! And tanks again for your support!**


	33. Chapter 32

**Changes Chapter 32**

As if captured in a nightmare, Logan watched Charles, Hank and Moira disappearing with the still unconscious Jean into the lab. The huge round double door closed right in front of his eyes, after Hank had stopped him from following them. Logan had realized that the blue mutant had said something to him… Still, he hadn't understood a single word… Too deep was the shock and his fear. He begged instantly that he would wake up any minute… That he was in fact lying in his bed with Jean in his arms… His head refused to believe what his eyes saw. Even if he saw everything, his ears heard everything…he just couldn't believe it was real…

Slowly, Logan leant his head against the cold door and closed his eyes, while he tried to control his breath again. Ororo watched him. She also noticed that Scott sat on the floor and was staring at the opposite wall. She felt her heart racing in every inch of her body. When she closed her eyes only for less than a second, she saw the blood on the floor again, saw Jean lying like dead in Logan's arms, while he was quaking with fear. He never quaked, he couldn't be scared so easily and if, he rarely showed it… But she had seen it,…she'd seen the terror in his eyes, his fear of losing her again. She knew it would definitely destroy him if she died again… Ororo swallowed hard and fought against her tears. It hurt her to see Logan suffering so much, she couldn't stand to think about Jean dying… She didn't even dare to imagine what he might do if all three of them wouldn't make it… She noticed that he was shaking again and knew that he fought hard against his inner turmoil. He never showed his feeling openly. He always shielded them, was always strong, unapproachable and reserved…, except when it came to Jean. She, and also Rogue, were the only ones who could reach his hidden true self…, who could reach the sensitive man underneath his rough outward appearance… Ororo looked down for a short moment, before she slowly walked over to him. He didn't move an inch. She swallowed again, before she stretched out her hand to touch him. Suddenly, and before she even was able to reach him, Logan turned around and left; leaving Scott and her looking at each other in confusion.

Only few minutes later, the door opened and Hank came into view, causing Scott to jump up and Storm to look at him with frightened eyes.

"Where is he?", he asked and looked at Storm, who had her eyes fixed on the little bundle in his arms and noticed that his clothes were covered with blood. "'Ro! Where is he?", he said again and raised his voice a bit.

Storm looked up, realizing that Scott was right behind her. "He just left…", she answered barely audible. "He was going crazy here…"

Hank nodded, even if he had figured out the truth by himself. He knew that Logan must have heard what had happened behind the doors. "Find him!", he said instead and handed over the bundle to her, while she stared at him with a mixture of surprise and confusion. "Physical contact is very important! It's possible because of his shock that he reacts rejecting…, but tell him that no one can be blamed for it!"

She nodded slowly and watched him turning around again. "What about Jean?", she called after him.

Hank gave her an indefinable look. "We do everything we can…"

"Did it happen because of us?", Scott suddenly asked, fear echoing in his voice. "Is it our fault?"

The blue mutant shook his head. "It's not your fault, nor Logan's! It's no ones fault…" With a last look on them he went back inside.

Storm felt completely lost and looked to and fro between Scott and the bundle in her arms.

"Go!", he said calmly. "I stay here and wait… If anything happens, I'll let you know!"

She nodded and walked towards the elevator.

XXX

Upstairs, Ororo opened Logan's room door and stepped inside. She found him at the window. His left hand was buried in his jeans pocket, while he supported himself with the other against the window. She knew that even if he was staring into the night, he wasn't aware of the things he actually saw…

Cautiously, she closed the door behind her and came closer She didn't know what to say. She couldn't even think straight since her heart was beating so strongly in her chest. "Logan…?", she finally said calmly and stepped closer. "Hank sent me…" He turned his head and fixed his eyes on the bundle in her hands. Immediately, she noticed the trace of anger, even hate, in them and swallowed hard. "It's not their fault, Logan…" Storm said soothingly. "It's no ones fault,…it just happened… No one can be blames for it!" She looked at him in despair. "They need you, Logan…"

He closed his eyes for a brief moment and tried to calm himself. His mind was racing…, too many things bombarded him at once. He didn't know how to handle them, it was just too much for him. He sighed. "Could you lay them down there?", he asked and nodded towards the two cradles at the opposite wall right next to her.

She nodded. "Sure…" Carefully, she laid both sleeping babies down and became aware of them for the first time, even if she had held them in her arms the whole time through. Storm felt thick lump in her throat as she looked at them. Painfully, she realized that they might grow up as motherless children… She took a deep breath and turned towards Logan, who stood right next to the bed and watched her with empty eyes. She couldn't even endure the pain she felt, so how must he feel, she wondered and felt her heart contracting.

Logan watched her biting her lip and knew what would come next. "'Ro…, please don't…", he said barely audible, but she immediately made a face and began to sob heavily. He broke eye contact and cursed her for making it even harder for him, for shattering the control he tried to keep up so desperately. He swallowed hard and looked at her shaking and pitiful form, the hot tears which seemed to run down her cheeks unstoppably. Suddenly, she stumbled forward and clung to him, while she continued to cry heavily on his shoulder. Logan blinked and concentrated on the floor. He couldn't lose it,…he wouldn't lose it- "'Ro, please…", he begged her, but she didn't stop. Swallowing even harder, he finally pulled her close and tried to calm her. He kept on stroking up and down her back until he could only hear single sobs from her.

Ororo looked up at him. Her eyes were red and wet of crying. She frowned since he avoided her gaze. "Logan, look at me…", she said, but he refused to do it. "Logan, please…", Storm said and tears were gathering in her eyes again. "…don't shut yourself off from me again…", she pleaded, remembering him doing so after Alcatraz. She wasn't able to endure it again. "Please…, look at me…" She touched his face and tilted her head until she finally met his eyes. Her heart stopped beating as she looked into them… The eyes she was staring into were so far away from Logan's usual ones… He was broken, the strength within him was gone completely… Ororo swallowed and ignored her tears this time. Her heart ached and she felt like dying right now… Absently, she was stroking his cheek. "You're not alone, Logan…", she suddenly said, her voice being barely more than a whisper. He broke eye contact and tried to push her away, but she used all her strength to keep him close. "We're there for you… But we can't help you if you turn your back on us, Logan…" She sobbed for a brief moment again. "Can't you just let it out, she asked with a slight trace of anger in her voice, since he didn't show the merest reaction. "Juts for one second!"

"I can't…", Logan hissed through gritted teeth and tried to get rid of her again.

"Why not?", Storm asked him in despair. "Because you show weakness then? Fine, show it!", she went on while she grabbed his arms when he pulled at her again. "No one will believe you that this…" She pointed to the two cradles and his eyes followed her. "…doesn't touch you a bit! No one, Logan!", she said a bit louder. "You're broken and lost… So stop playing the cold-hearted loner who doesn't care, because I know the real you by now!" Ororo watched him swallowing again. He had kept his eyes closed while she spoke and she knew that she had hit him hard. She looked down on her hands which still hold on tightly to his wrists and noticed that he had stopped pulling. He'd given up. Finally, she raised her arms and pulled him down, burying his head on her shoulder. Immediately, his muscles tensed and he wrapped his arms around her, as his last barriers shattered to pieces. "It's okay…", she only whispered and closed her eyes, while she stroke his head and back and waited for him to calm down this time…

XXX

Scott sat on the floor again and waited. His arms laid on his knees, which he'd pulled close. He sighed and bent his head down, so that it now rested in his right hand. His mind still tried to assimilate the things that had happened before. He winced for a brief moment as his hand touched a wounded sport on his chin where Logan had left his mark. Logan…, he wondered how he was feeling right now…

He had looked into the other man's eyes and for the first time ever he'd seen what the others saw in him… Scott still asked himself if this drama hadn't happened if he had just accepted Jean's decision… He felt guilty and blamed himself for being so childish. He had done things which were so completely irrational for his character. He still asked himself what had gotten into him when he'd attacked Logan with his optic blast… He never used it against other people…only if he took part in battles and had to protect himself or help others…

Scott ran a hand through his hair and rested his head in his hand again, while he stared down on the ground. He could never look into the eyes of the others again…not after what he'd done… He'd attacked one of his own team members just to provoke him enough to unleash the beast within Logan. He thanked God that Logan had controlled Wolverine… He cursed himself for his own stupidity… Suddenly, Scott looked up as the door opened next to him…

XXX

"Do you think it was coincidence?", Storm asked calmly and still looked at the two cradles in front of her. She was still holding his hands while she sat on the bed next to him.

"What?", he asked hoarsely.

"Before Jean took of to find you… I wanted to ask her if she was okay, but she thought I wanted to talk about…you know…the thing with Mystique…", she stopped and looked at him for a brief moment, but he had fixed his eyes to the front. "She said that she'd forgiven me…and wanted me to be the godmother…" Storm swallowed and noticed that he looked down. "I mean… I keep on feeling that she…that she knew it somehow… Why else did she say it all of a sudden? I don't understand it…" Despair was mirrored on her face and she sighed, while she fought against upcoming tears.

"I don't believe in coincidences… Things happen for a reason", Logan grunted barely audible. "Even if I don't see a reason here…"

"Yeah, but still…" She didn't know what to say. When her eyes looked up again she noticed something. "I haven't even asked Hank what they…"

"Boy and a girl…", he interrupted her.

Ororo frowned in surprise. "How do you know? You haven't…" Then it hit her. "Your senses…" She nodded in understanding and suddenly became sag again. She had wanted Jean to experience an uncomplicated birth, wanted them to be happy with the twins… She and the girls had even wondered if Logan was one of those guys who passed out while the partner gave birth… She's never believed it…she knew he was strong. Even if there was nothing strong about him right now…

"What kind of names would she like?", he suddenly asked barely audible.

Surprised, Ororo turned her head. "You haven't discussed it?"

"Nope…"

"Why?", she asked and turned her head to face him.

He shrugged. "Dunno…"

She thought about his question. She remembered how Jean and her had once talked about strange names which parents had given their children. But that was a long time ago… If she remembered correctly, she had mentioned a few names back then… "I don't know…", Storm said lost in thought. "You're the father, Logan… What kind of names do you like?"

He gave a derisive laugh. "I don't even know my real one, 'Ro…" Logan gave her a short look before he shrugged. "I don't know…" He ran a hand through his tired looking face.

"You should try and sleep a bit, Logan…", she said and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Do you want me to watch over them?"

He shook his head. "I'll be fine, thanks…"

She nodded and got up. "I'm downstairs if anything's wrong. Try to sleep!"

Logan watched her leave. He knew he wouldn't find any sleep for a long time. Suddenly, the door opened again.

"I forgot something", Storm said. "Hank said they need physical contact. He wanted me to tell you that it's very important!"

He nodded. "Thanks." Cautiously, she closed the door again. He paused for a moment and closed his eyes. He couldn't manage to control his fear or emotions. He felt completely torn between his need to be with Jean and his responsibility towards his children. Logan knew Jean would have wanted him to stay with them. Still, he needed her… He felt so lost and lonely without her and kept on asking himself if she's made him so weak… He'd never been or felt so dependant on somebody, still he new she felt the same way. In the past hours he'd tried to talk to her mentally, had hoped to receive an answer, but it didn't work. Suddenly, Logan looked up as he heard one of the babies whining quietly. Slowly, he got up and made his way towards the cradle. By now, also the second child began to make a face. Logan sighed. Neither did he know what they wanted, nor how he should take care of two children at once. God, how he missed her… Carefully, he took clumsy the girl into his arms, since the boy was still the calmer one and tried to calm her. Somehow, he managed to make her cry even harder and soon, also her brother decided to raise his voice. Logan sighed again. "Come on…", he pleaded and rocked her gently. He frowned as he remembered something Moira had taught him. Slowly, he raised a finger to her mouth and watched as she immediately began to suck on it. Logan smirked slightly. "Hungry, eh?", he said calmly and looked around. He had to find something to carry both at the same time…

XXX

Storm walked through the huge double door in the basement. She had met Hank on her way downstairs who'd told her where she would find Jean. He himself was on his way upstairs to talk to Logan. Ororo reached the next door and found Scott and the Professor on the other side, both were looking through a huge window into another room. Confused, she stepped forward. "Why is she on the isolation ward?", she asked in confusion. Her heart sped up. Something must have gone wrong…

Charles turned towards her, while Scott stared into the room. "It's a prevention!", he said calmly, still she felt his tension. "She lost a lot of blood and is very weak. We can't risk an infection…"

She could only stare while her mind tried to assimilate the news. "How did it happen anyway? And…if she's on the station,…no one can get to her besides the personal doctor… Do you know what you're doing to him by keeping her in isolation?" She'd spoken very fast in her agitation.

"I know…" Charles said soothingly. "And we don't know how or why it happened. So far all I know is that it must have been an internal injury or something like that", he said while he looked at Jean again. "It had slowly caused an internal bleeding, which has gotten worse. Jean's body has reacted to it by quitting its work." He sighed. "Hank said it was a miracle that the babies were still alive… Speaking of which…" He looked up. "How is Logan doing?"

Storm snorted. "What do you think?" She watched Moira taking care of Jean. "I'm not gonna tell him that he can't even be close to her!", she suddenly said completely serious.

Charles nodded. "Hank wanted to do it…" He sighed in despair. "I'll go and use Cerebro. We have to keep an eye on the Brotherhood…especially now…"

Storm watched him leave before she turned her attention towards Scott, who still stared into the room. She walked over to him. "He didn't tell you something…", he suddenly said, his voice being barely more than a whisper.

"What?", she asked frightened.

He turned his head and she immediately saw the dried tears on his cheeks. Fear was taking over her heart. "She's in a coma… They don't know if she will even survive this night…"

"What!", Storm nearly shrieked in shock. Suddenly, her head felt very light. All emotions were gathered around her heart and overwhelmed it. Everything she could feel right now was the strongest kind of fear she'd ever experienced. She felt deeply scared because of the news and started to think about coincidence and destiny again… "Are they gonna tell him?"

Scott shook his head. "I don't think so… Logan has enough to deal with right now…"

"But they have to!", she protested. "They can't keep that away from him! If he finds out, he'll…" She broke off and ran a hand through her face. This was a nightmare… Nothing more that that… With tears in her eyes she looked at her opposite. "If she's really dying…", Ororo said deadly serious and started to cry as she was overwhelmed by her emotions. "…then he wants to be with her… They can't keep that away from him! They just can't!"


	34. Chapter 33

**Changes Chapter 33**

A depressive silence reigned over the school on the next morning. The younger students were still sleeping, while the adults were standing or sitting in the kitchen, each of them deep lost in ones own thought. Hank sat on a chair staring at his bowl of muesli, while Scott leant against the counter with a mug of coffee in his hand. He, too, had his eyes fixed on an invisible object in front of him. They didn't even look up when Rogue and her friends entered and eyed them in surprise. They weren't aware of the things that had happened and got confused by the strange mood the adults were radiating. After they'd taken their seats, they looked at each other. Finally, Jubilee turned her head towards the grown-ups. "Did someone die or what?"

Scott's head immediately shot up, but Hank had raised a hand quickly to sooth him.

"Jean collapsed at night…", the blue mutant explained calmly and looked to and fro the shocked faces.

"Is she…?", Rogue asked frightened and rested her hand immediately on her belly.

"No,…but it's not looking good…"

"What about the babies?"

"We had to do a caesarean…they're fine…"

Jubilee felt deeply ashamed. "I'm sorry… I didn't…"

Peter and Kitty looked at each other. They've noticed the look Bobby gave Rogue after he'd heard the news. "She'll be fine…", Kitty whispered so calmly that no one else but Bobby, who sat right next to her, heard it.

Rogue bit her lip. She couldn't believe it… "Logan…what about him?", she asked after a while and looked at Hank with wet eyes, as suddenly Ororo stormed into the kitchen.

"Where's he?", she asked out of breath.

"Who?", Hank asked frowning.

She swallowed and tried to catch her breath. "Logan… Where's he?"

Scott nearly dropped his mug. "Is something wrong with Jean!", he asked scared and stepped forward.

"What?", she asked confused. "No… I don't think so…" She checked the corridor. "I can't find him anywhere… Has anyone seen him?", she asked again, while her heart was beating strongly in her chest.

"No…", Hank shook his head. "Have you checked both rooms upstairs?"

"I've checked nearly every room…", Storm said frightened. "He's also not in the basement and the kids are gone, too…"

Everyone looked at her in confusion. Scott gave Hank a look, since the blue mutant thought intensively. "Have you checked rooms on this level? Maybe he's in a room which is closer to the kitchen in case that the kids are hungry", he asked after a while. "At least he was on his way to it when I wanted to talk to him at night… And since his temporary room is too far down the corridor upstairs, he might have stayed downstairs for the rest of the night…"

Storm paused for a brief moment. "No, I haven't checked all rooms downstairs…"

"He's not gone, 'Ro…", he said calmly, since he sensed that this thought had crossed her mind.

"I know…", she sighed. "I'll go and look for him."

"We'll help ya!", Jubilee said and got off her chair, followed by Rogue. "We take the left side. Come on!" Rogue and she disappeared around the corner, while Ororo walked down the corridor into the opposite direction.

She looked into every room on that level, but couldn't find him anywhere. Disappointed and sad, but also worried, she returned to the kitchen.

"And?", Hank asked her, but she shook her head.

"It can't be…", Scott said and put down his mug. "You said it yourself… He wouldn't do it!"

"I know!", he gave back. "And he wouldn't!"

They looked up when Rogue returned. "Nothing…"

Storm bit her lip. "I don't believe that…"

Shortly after that, Jubilee came back. "He's in the TV room."

"What?", the white haired woman asked and turned around. "I've looked into it…he wasn't…"

"He's sleeping on the sofa", the girl said while she sat down again. "So you couldn't have seen him by looking into the room only. Oh, and the cuties are with him…"

Storm gave Hank a skeptical look before she got up and left again.

She walked down the corridor and entered the TV room cautiously. Slowly, she walked towards the sofa. Relieved to see him, Storm laid a hand on her heart, before she closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. She'd never been so happy to see anyone in her whole life before… Slowly, she walked around the sofa and sat down on the table. She picked up the two empty small bottles from the ground and dropped them on the table, before she looked at him. One baby was sleeping in his right arm, on the seat back side of the sofa, while the other laid on his chest; apparently rocked into sleep by his steady breathing. Ororo smiled sadly. She felt both, happiness and sorrow at the same time. She didn't even dare to imagine how hard it must be for him…

Suddenly, the baby on his chest began to move and made a face. Sensing, that it wouldn't take long before it would start crying, she bent forward. Cautiously, Storm took the child into her arms. "Hey…", she whispered and stroked its cheek gently with her finger. She did her best to keep it calm, but still its cry soon echoed through the room and made Logan leapt up. Sleepy, he blinked. "Sorry, I tried to calm it…", she said apologetic.

"Him…", he corrected her and got up slowly, feeling drunk from this sudden interruption, while he still held his daughter in his arm. Tired, he ran his free hand through his face. "How late is it?"

"7:50 a.m.", Ororo said worriedly. "How long did you sleep?"

He shrugged. "Tow hours or something." He looked into her despaired face since she couldn't soothe the boy. "He's hungry…", he explained calmly. "They should've gotten their bottles thirty minutes ago…" Logan looked at his daughter and smiled softly when she awoke and blinked. Still, Ororo noticed that the smile didn't reach his eyes. Finally, he got up and she followed him into the kitchen.

"Hey…", Rogue greeted him sadly, but also relieved to see him.

"Hey, kid…", Logan said and began to prepare the bottles, while Storm sat down and still tried to calm the heavily crying boy.

"We looked everywhere for you…", Jubilee told him, while she curiously looked at the boy. "You scared Storm to death, you know…"

He gave her a look, but didn't say anything. He definitely didn't feel like discussing it right now. He also noticed Rogue's sad eyes which were fixed on him. Even if he appreciated her sympathy, he couldn't use it right now…

"I talked with the boys", Hank suddenly said and made Logan turn his head. "We'll finish your old room right after breakfast. In that way you're closer to the staircase and the elevator again…"

"Thanks", Logan said calmly and turned his attention to the bottles again.

"Can I help you?", he heard Rogue ask.

"Yeah, you could screw on it." He handed over one bottle.

"'Kay…", she answered and took it from him.

In the meanwhile, Logan reached out the second bottle to Storm. She immediately understood what he wanted her to do. With her free hand she turned the lid into one direction, while he turned the bottle into the opposite one. Afterwards, he leant back against the fridge and watched his daughter drinking, while Rogue handed the other bottle over to Storm, who gave it to the boy. Gladly, she heard how he stopped crying and smiled down at him when he began to suck on it.

Scott had watched them closely. "Don't you want to know how she is?", he asked him after a while.

"I know it, pal…", Logan grunted without looking up. "So I don't have to…"

The other man raised an eyebrow. "How?"

"The Professor keeps him updated mentally", Hank explained and got up. "Ready guys? We still have work to do!" He walked towards the door and Bobby and Peter followed him. Scott put down his mug and left, too, leaving Kitty and Jubilee staring at the kids, while Rogue watched Logan closely.

"You look tired…", she suddenly said worriedly and he looked up to give her a short look.

"I'm fine…", he assured her. Even if it wasn't the truth, he still hoped she would buy it.

Storm laid the empty bottle down and watched Logan doing the same, before he shouldered the girl and stroke her back gently. Since she didn't know what to do, she did the same with the boy until he burped slightly. "Do you want to go downstairs?", she asked Logan. "I can take them upstairs and watch over them, so you can take your time and sleep a bit more…"

He nodded finally.

Rogue got off her chair and joined him. "I'll carry him if you want…", she offered him.

"Her…", he corrected her and gently laid his daughter into the arms of Rogue. "Thanks…" With one last look at them he moved towards the door. He felt scared to see Jean in the basement… It sent waves of fear through his entire body, every time he heard the Professor's voice in his head. Every time again, he prayed that he wouldn't tell him that it was over…

"What's her name?", Rogue suddenly asked and looked at him when he stopped.

"Lily…", he said calmly without turning around. "Lily and Jack…" With that he was gone, leaving the women looking at each other worriedly…

**Okay, this chapter is short, but you got two at once. ; ) I haven't written any further so far. I typed up everything I've written in the last two days. Thanks for the reviews again: ) Great that you still like it. : ) Hope you enjoyed this two chapters, too. ; ) Oh, and it is Lily and Jack, because nearly every favorite character of mine is named Jack. Jack Sparrow in example or Jack Bauer in 24… And I like that name, so I hope it's okay for you. And Lily, because I like the Harry Potter books. ; )**


	35. Chapter 34

**Author's note: Tanks to Tamara for doing the Beta! You're my hero!**

**Changes Chapter 34**

It appeared to him as if he was seeing and experiencing the same horrible things over and over again. He saw her dying in the water, dying after he had to stab her and now she lay lifelessly on this cold lab table and wasn't waking up. Logan leaned against the window and watched her. He didn't take notice of Moira, why should he? His only interest was the red haired woman who kept on sleeping this unhealthy sleep for over two weeks now, while he was going crazy. He had barely slept during that time. Either was he taking care of his children during the day, while he was watching over her at night Thanks to 'Ro he was able to do it. But even if he seemed calm and controlled, he was far from it. He wanted to be close to her again, to be able to touch her and smell her. He missed her warmth at night next to him, missed her voice, and her whole being… He had thought about things that might help her, but couldn't come up with any solution. He was sick of the Professor telling him he just had to wait until her body recovered again. He couldn't wait longer, wouldn't wait longer. Day after day it became harder for him to tame the beast within him. His nightmares returned about a week ago making it impossible for him to find any sleep at night, if he tried to rest at least for a few hours. Logan had to think about his conversation with Hank, which had taken place two days ago…

"_Can't sleep again?" Hank asked and the door closed behind him when he joined Logan who was sitting on the chair in front of the window._

"_Nope," he grunted and ran a hand over his tired and exhausted face._

"_Look, my friend," he heard Beasts say in his best lecturer tone. "You can't do this forever. Your body needs rest… I know you want to be close to Jean, but…you can't just walk around for weeks without sleeping." Worriedly he looked down on him._

"_I know," was all Logan had to say, his eyes were still fixed on Jean._

_Hank walked over to the window and watched her, too. "Her body is recovering too slowly… It's a shame that we can't take her to any hospitals without risking her being killed by humans."_

"_Situation in the cities is getting worse, huh?"_

"_You bet!" Hank said and turned around. "Yesterday they killed five mutanst. I wonder where this is going to end…" Sadly, he looked down. "I wished they'd never invented the cure. It has made things only worse then before…"_

"_What happened happened. It's too late to regret it," Logan grunted and joined him at the window. _

_The other man noticed the anger in his opposite's eyes. He knew how hard it must be for him to watch the mother of his children in this state. "How are you dealing with it Logan?"_

_He gave him a look before he switched back to Jean. "Living through it. Shouldn't her blood be recovered again?"_

_Hank sighed. "Well, if she had your healing factor, definitely…"_

_Logan looked at him. He narrowed his eyes, thinking. "Well, couldn't it be just copied?"_

_The blue mutant frowned. "What do you mean? Copied like a book?"_

"_They extracted Leech's powers so it should be possible to extract mine, too, shouldn't it?" he asked him. "You're the geneticists, so tell me!"_

_Hank considered the things his friend had said for a moment as he gazed down at Jean. "With the right equipment it should be possible…"_

"_And we don't have it?"_

"_No, we don't have it. And besides", he said giving him a warning look, "it could become dangerous for you. If any scientist found out that something like your healing factor existed…he would lock you up and perform some nasty experiments on you. And even if it worked there is always a chance that it would do her more harm than good."_

_Logan glowered at him. "I was a lab rat before, pal. I know how this works…" A familiar skint echoed through the small room. "See?"_

_Hank knew what he meant. He laid a hand on Logan's shoulder. "And because of it you should know what risks it brings with it. Just be patient Logan. She will wake up and…"_

"_I know the truth, bub", his opposite interrupted him with narrowed eyes. "'Ro told me…"_

_Hank lowered his hand and sighed. "What?" Logan growled. "Did you really believe I wouldn't find out?"_

"_Logan," the blue man tried to explain, but decided it would only make it worse. "Just be patient. Think about your kids… I doubt they want to lose their father too. Don't you think?" With one last pleading look at him, Hank walked out of the room, leaving Logan brooding for the rest of the night while he watched over Jean…_

He sighed and lowered his gaze. With his hands buried in his jeans pockets he thought it through. There had to be a way. If there were any chance to help her, he would try it. All of a sudden the door on the left opened. Wondering who was strolling around so late at night, Logan turned his head and sighed in annoyance as he recognized Scott.

"How is she doing?", the man asked and stopped right next to him.

"Baking cookies in the kitchen," Logan growled. "What do you think?" He looked into the room again; ignoring the look the other man gave him.

"Logan, it was just a question", Scott huffed angrily. Taking a deep breath he said, "I came down here to talk to you."

"Why? You need to be beaten up again?"

"No, I mean really talking. At least if that's possible in view of your mood tonight." Scott waited for a reaction of his comrade. Finally, he heard him sighing and turning towards him.

"Fine, talk!" Logan growled and folded his arms across his chest, leaning against the widow, and glared at him.

Scott buried his hands in his pockets and looked for the right words. "I had some time to think and… I wanted to apologize…"

"What an honor…" Logan grunted sarcastically. "Did I hit your head to hard? How come you suddenly want to make friends with the _animal_?"

"Logan, I really mean it!", the other man said and looked at him in annoyance. He couldn't understand that his opposite was really as stubborn as a brick wall. "I made mistakes… I should have accepted Jean's decision and let her be happy. I know that I said things to you which can't possibly be excused…and I am really sorry for that and for attacking you…" He looked into the skeptical eyes of his opposite. He knew from the moment he came down that this was going to be hard. But he didn't imagine that it would become _that_ hard.

"And what now? You want us to live happily ever after?"

"I want us to start all over again," Scott said calmly. "We have to deal with things here and we can't keep on fighting for years." He broke eye contact and looked towards Jean. "She has made her decision and I'm fine with it. Even if it's hard…" He switched his eyes again. "I know you love her. I've watched you in the past weeks…so, I am sorry for doing those things to the two of you and I hope you can forgive me. And if you need help with the team…just ask me."

Logan nodded, thinking. He would never admit it, but he was surprised to hear those words from Scott. He looked into the room for a brief moment again. "So, do you think you'll have a problem taking orders?"

Scott smirked. He recognized the words he'd said to Logan back before they had headed to rescue Rogue. "I don't know," he answered playfully, using the same answer Logan had given him back then. "Give me one."

Logan had to smirk and walked towards the door. "Take care of the school and Jean."

"Where're ya going?" Scott asked him in confusion.

"Feeding the cubs," the other man grunted and the door closed behind him.

Ororo looked up sleepily as the door opened to Logan's room. She was lying on the bed and realized she must have fallen asleep. Slowly, she sat up when Logan entered and looked up at him. "Hey," she greeted him tiredly. "I thought you were staying downstairs again."

"Can't sleep", he replied tersely and looked into the two cradles.

Storm glanced at her watch. "Already time?" she mumbled to herself and got up to help him. He handed her a bottle while he took his daughter into his arms and placed a light kiss to her forehead. "Hey pumpkin…" Carefully, he sat down on the bed and watched her, while Ororo sat down next to him.

"Any changes?" she asked him after a while. He shook his head. "I'm sorry…" She looked down and gave the boy a short smile.

"How's Bobby? Is he still overprotective?" Logan asked. He remembered Rogue coming to him completely pissed and annoyed, since Bobby was scared that it could happen to her too. He followed her all around the house, making sure that nothing could happen to her…

_Logan looked up as his room door opened. "Hey, can I stay here for a while?" Rogue asked, waiting for him to tell her to come in._

"_Sure," he said and sat upright on his bed, since he had dozed on it before. "What's wrong?" He watched the young woman in an advanced stage of pregnancy coming closer and sitting down next to him._

_She sighed in annoyance. "He's getting on my nerves," she only said and Logan had to guess._

"_Bobby?"_

_She nodded. "Since the thing happened to Jean, he refuses to leave me alone for only a second. Would you believe that I stepped on him when I wanted to get out of bed because he snuck into my room and slept on the floor?"_

_Logan had to chuckle a bit. "He's worried."_

"_He's overprotective and annoying!" she corrected him, while her hand rested on her belly. _

"_Look, he's afraid that it could happen to you too. So, he wants to be with you in case that anything does happen", he tried to explain calmly. _

_Rogue gave him a despaired look. Recalling Jubilee and Kitty telling her that she got way too emotional and sensitive during her pregnancy, she tried to discover if she might have overreacted. "But you haven't been like this during Jean's pregnancy. I mean, you never left her side, but I can't remember you telling her that she shouldn't do this or that."_

_He smirked. "Because I knew that she would slap me if I did…"_

"_So you want me to slap him?" she asked, smirking._

"_No, kid," Logan said and gave her a look. "I want you to talk to him."_

_She nodded. "I'll try…" She noticed his look and wondered what he was thinking right now. Silence filled the room, since neither of them said anything. "How're your kids?" she suddenly asked and looked at the two cradles._

"_Good, so far," he answered. "How about you?" He couldn't help but feeling worried. He knew that the baby was fine, that she was fine, but still he shared Bobby's fear…_

"_I'm fine…just getting nervous…" she smiled at him shyly and cleared her throat. "Actually, I wanted to ask you something, but…"_

_He bent forward to have a better look at her. "But?"_

_She gave him a sad look. "I thought it wasn't the time to bother you. Because of Jean and all…" She lowered her gaze._

_Logan made a face and touched her chin for a brief moment to make her look up again. "Ya never bother me, kid… So what is it ya wanna ask me?" _

_She swallowed and cleared her throat once more, before she turned towards him. Nervously, she played with the cloth of her shirt. "Well…I…I was wondering if you…"_

_He smirked. "Kid, as long as this isn't a proposal, I'm not gonna eat ya, so what is it?"_

_Rogue had to smile. She knew he wasn't feeling so well lately, but still he tried to cheer her up. Finally, she looked up at him. "Would you be the godfather of Isabella?" _

_Logan looked down for a brief moment making Rogue think that she had definitely asked him the wrong thing. "Isabella, huh? Do you really want it?" he asked her and scrutinized her face._

"_I wouldn't be asking otherwise," she gave back. "I want her to be in good hands if something happens," Rogue added calmly._

"_Kid, nothing gonna happen to ya!"_

"_Well, you never know, right?" she asked him and noticed the pain in his eyes. "So, would you do it?"_

_Logan thought about it briefly. He had already enough to do with taking care of his kids and worrying about Jean. "If Jean gets better, then yes… 'Kay?"_

_She nodded. "'Kay." He got up and reached out to help her getting off the bed. "Thanks, Logan," she said and hugged him, before she placed a light kiss on his cheek. "And I'm sure Jean will be better soon…don't worry…" _

"_Thanks, kid," he gave her a small smile and watched her leave._

"Well, at least I heard her yelling at him today," Storm answered.

"Hmm…" he growled and thought about their conversation. "Could you watch over the kids again tomorrow?" he asked her after a while, without looking at her.

Storm raised an eyebrow. "Sure. Why are you asking?"

He put the empty bottle on the bedside table and lay down, while he stroked Lily's back, who was lying on his chest. "I need some rest…"

She nodded. "Good idea," she told him with a look only he could understand. He knew that she was aware of his lack of sleep again. "Come on, sweetheart," she said in a loving voice. "Burping time."

Logan watched her stroking the boy's back. "Thanks, 'Ro," he suddenly said and she turned her head in surprise. He could have sworn that she'd blushed.

"No problem," she smiled and broke eye contact, before she took care of the boy again. "Try to sleep a bit." She got up, but he held her back.

"You can stay here. I'll sleep downstairs," he said and laid Lily down into the cradle again. Ororo noticed the strange look in his eyes with which he was looking at his kids. "Logan," she asked him worriedly. "You're not up to something, are you?"

"I'm up to going to sleep, 'Ro. That's all," he smirked. He noticed that she still eyed him suspiciously. He sighed and walked up towards her, hearing the rain pouring on the outside. "What's wrong?"

Storm shrugged. "I don't like the way you look at them," she said calmly and met his eyes.

"I'm tired, 'Ro, that's all," he said again, hoping to convince her this time. She looked down, arms folded in front of her chest. He touched her cheek for a brief moment and made her look at him again. "If anything's wrong, I'm downstairs, 'kay?" Still skeptical, she finally nodded and looked at him surprised as he placed a light kiss on her cheek. "Thanks, 'Ro," he said, before he turned around, buried his hands in pockets and closed the door behind him. Still staring at the door, she felt fear spreading in her chest.

XXX

"I don't know, Hank," Peter said and looked at the wall. "The room is too small for all the stuff…"

"We don't have any bigger rooms. Except if you want Charles to give up his headmaster room", Hank winked at the young man in front of him. The whole day through they were working on finishing Logan's old room. Right now they had the problem that the room was too small for all the baby stuff and the double bed. "Well, let's see" He looked at the plan they'd made again.

"Why don't you just connect this room with the next one?" they suddenly heard the Professor's voice at the door and looked up.

Peter frowned. "But Kitty…"

"Kitty moves into Jubilees room. They were coming to me with this for the past three weeks, so I finally agreed to it. Even if I think that it means trouble." The Professor looked at Hank's plan. "So, if you place a door right over there," he pointed to the right side of the wall. "You can connect both rooms with each other."

"Should be possible," Peter said and moved towards it.

"But Peter," Charles said urgently. "Please use tools!" He smiled at the boy and turned around again.

"Have you seen Scott today?" Hank asked him and he stopped. "He wanted to help us carrying all the stuff up to this level. I couldn't find him earlier…"

The Professor closed his eyes for a brief moment and concentrated before he opened them, looking worried. "He's in the garage. But he seems to be very outraged."

"Probably one of the kids again", Peter said. "Last time they'd hidden his favorite bike. And you know how he is when it comes to it!"

"I hope you're right," Charles said before he left the room.

"So, ready for some action?" Hank said and put the plan away.

They kept on working the whole day through until the late evening. Exhausted they walked down to the kitchen where the others were already waiting with dinner.

"I doubt the two of you will stay together longer than a week!" Bobby teased Kitty and Jubilee.

"Wanna bet?" Jubilee gave back. "It's gonna be fun! I'm tellin' ya!"

"Hey, where are Scott and Storm?" Hank asked the younger mutants and looked around. "And Logan? I haven't seen him the whole day through."

Rogue swallowed her soup and laid the spoon down before she took a piece of bread from the basket. "Storm said he wanted to sleep."

"That was late last night when he said it, Rogue", Jubilee said. "As far as I know at least."

The other woman shrugged. "Well, he hasn't slept for a few days…"

"He _never_ sleeps during a whole day!" Jubilee gave back.

"Girls!" Bobby said and raised his hands. "We get it now!" He rolled his eyes and looked at Peter. "Sorry, for not helping ya with the room."

His opposite waved off. "We're nearly finished."

"Okay, I'm only asking once!" they suddenly heard Scott's angry voice at the door and soon the man came into the kitchen with a more than pissed off look on his face. "Where's my bike?" The younger mutants looked at each other in confusion and shook their heads. "Come on! It was there last night, so where did you put it?" He looked to and fro between them.

"We don't know! Really!" Bobby answered. "Kitty was moving into Jubes room and she helped her with it, I was with Rogue and Peter helped Hank with Logan's room… So we don't have anything to do with your bike."

Scott sighed and folded his arms in front of his chest. He had searched the whole grounds for his bike, but couldn't find it anywhere. The last time the kids had played such a trick on him was long time ago. "Look, I've enough to do with taking care of the X-Men and watching over Jean…"

"Hold on a second!" Hank interrupted him. "That's Logan's job. He's the leader now, remember?"

"He told me to take care of things," Scott gave back and noticed the strange look on Hank's face.

He was thinking. "Why would he do that?"

Scott shrugged. "Probably because he has enough to do with the kids?", he asked him ironically.

"He wouldn't tell you to watch over Jean," Hank shot back. "Something's wrong."

Scott was just about to answer when Storm came into the kitchen completely beside herself followed by the Professor. Everyone looked at them, instantly worried.

"He's gone," she said breathlessly.

"What?" Scott asked her and stepped closer.

"I wanted to wake him and the window was open…he's gone…" she told him sobbing. "He left…"

"So, who took your bike, eh?" Bobby asked Scott and shook his head.

"Logan wouldn't leave without a reason!" Rogue said in disbelief and looked at the others.

"I knew he was up to something, damn it!", Ororo suddenly cried and buried her face in her hands, while Scott tried to soothe her. "Why didn't I stop him?"

Hank looked at them deadly serious. "I think I know what he's up too," he said through gritted teeth, causing the others to turn their heads.

"What?" Charles asked him and came closer.

"I've warned him about that," the blue mutant shook his head.

XXX

Warren Worthington Jr. was on his way back to his office. He still had work to do and knew it was going to be a long night before he would find sleep. He closed the door behind him and got rid off his coat before he walked over to his desk. _Snikt_. He froze at the sound and didn't dare to turn around first. Worthington swallowed when he felt that eyes were staring at him from behind. Slowly, he turned around. The shadow of a man was projected by the light of the moon on the door. Warren stumbled backwards as he saw 3 sharp knives in the hand of the person. "I'm…I'm sorry… Please, I've got a son…", he stuttered and watched the man coming closer. His heart raced in his chest and his eyes were fixed on the person in front of him. Suddenly, he realized that it wasn't knives _in_ the hand of his opposite. "You're a mutant… Look, I can understand that you're pissed… I'm sorry how the cure worked… My son is also a mutant… So, please…don't kill me…"

His opposite grabbed him from the ground and pulled him up, while his dark eyes looked at him piercingly. "You gonna do something for me, bub," was all Logan said before he pushed him towards the door.

**Okay, first chapter which was not prewritten. I just typed it. Thanks for the reviews again. Oh, and to explain the name Isabella: As I said, the one who had written review number 100 got an email and I told her that she could name Rogue's baby. So, thanks to **Corellianjedi2 **for picking a name! And thanks to Tamara for offering doing a Beta read. I'll send the next chapter as soon as I've written it. ;) See ya!**


	36. Chapter 35

**Changes Chapter 35**

The corridor was dark. Too dark for them, but not for him. The tensed breaths of the soldiers echoed through it, making their way right towards the sensitive ears of their target. With weapons in their hands ready to strike if necessary they made their way through it. Back on back they gave each other cover, knowing that only one inattentive moment would be enough to end their lives. They were well trained, maybe too well trained for him, but he knew how they worked, knew all their tricks. He heard their strong heartbeats and could tell that they were scared. Apparently, his reputation had a far wider range than he thought…

He hid himself in the shadows; his dark eyes fixed on them, noticing every movement the six men strong group made… He didn't want to kill them…but he would if he had too. His aim was to get out of here quickly and without any dead bodies on his list. He wanted to get back home, he was too freaking long gone.

Suddenly, a light shot up, shining right into Logan's face. "There!" one of the soldiers bellowed and immediately opened fire. Fast as he was, the mutant jumped and grabbed one of the wet pipes and pulled himself up, while bullets hit it merciless. He growled angrily and looked down at them. The soldiers took position, watching each back of the other. Logan sniffed. They'd chased him down to the basement. He was not only stupid enough to get caught by destroying all data they had extracted out of him, no, he was also foolish enough to get trapped down here. Cursing, he moved closer to the wall, while the bullets cut his flesh. Gritting his teeth he looked around, ignoring the shouts of the soldiers, who were know trying another strategy. Logan wondered if they planned to use any kind of gas on him. Cautiously he moved sideways along the cold and wet wall. His eyes kept on looking around. There had to be a way out of here… Suddenly, his eyes stopped. This could be it! Looking down again, he made sure the soldiers weren't about to use any hard weapons on him so soon. Gritting his teeth once more, Logan jumped onto the pipe again, using his claws to steady himself, before he started to run.

"Quickly! Get him!" the leader of the group shouted while he kept on firing at the mutant above them. Logan felt three bullets hitting his back and tumbled briefly. Burying one claw into the pipe he kept himself from falling, until parts of it exploded.

"Shit!" he cursed as he fell down to the ground, not able to grab the pipe again. Trying to catch his fall, he failed and landed hard on his shoulder. Groaning, Logan stumbled while getting up. Ignoring the pain and the blood, he ran down the corridor, following the smell of water. He heard the bullets crashing into the walls right next to him. Some even stroked his hair and ears, while the soldiers kept on yelling for him to stop. He wouldn't do them the favor. Not today.

Breathing heavily by now, Logan reached the end of the corridor. Following his instincts he turned left without even stopping. His ears, despite the open fire, heard everything around him and he knew he was close. There had to be a sewer very close. All of a sudden, he landed on the ground, knowing that he had been hit. He tried to get up, but couldn't first. Logan looked down on himself. His beloved leather jacket had more holes in it than any moths could ever make, his jeans were drenched with blood and his healing factor was overworking again. Growling, he watched the soldiers coming closer, weapons pointing at his chest and head. He knew a bullet to his head would knock him out for at least a few minutes. Logan narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth. While turning around, he used his hands to get up from the ground and began to run down the corridor again. He turned around another corner. Suddenly he stopped. It was a dead end. "Damn!" he cursed and turned his head quickly, just to see the soldiers coming around the corner, too. That's it…

"Surrender mutant!" the leader shouted and pointed his weapon right to Logan's heart. "Or we open fire."

Logan snorted and cocked an eyebrow. "Didn't you do it the whole time through, pal?"

"Shut up, mutie and surrender!"

He looked two and fro between them. They were heavy armed and also their body armor looked pretty thick. But he wouldn't be Wolverine, if he really cared. He knew the armor would feel like paper if his claws met them. Still, he didn't came to kill… "Look, pal. I'm not here to start a fight. So, piss off and leave me alone!" he growled and prepared himself for any attacks. He heard the _click_ of the weapons and knew talking wouldn't do today. The soldiers slowly came closer while the red laser beams still pointed to his heart. As if that would change anything, Logan thought and started to growl threatening. He wouldn't be their new lab rat, not for God's sake. _Snikt!_ "Last warning, bub!"

The soldiers didn't care that was obvious. Of course they knew his reputation, his assassin skills, and that he was the perfect killer. Still, they didn't care. They had their order and they would fulfill it. "Surrender or we kill you!" the leader shot back raising his weapon even higher, aiming at Logan's head now.

"Can you read, bub?" his opposite shot back pointing out his reputation again, while getting angrier with every second. He didn't move an inch; he didn't even blink. All Logan did was stare at them with an indefinable expression is his eyes. He would kill them for sure if they fired only once. He had a mission to fulfill as they had their orders and he would make sure that _he_ was successful…

"Get down and surrender!" the leader yelled at him angrily and his finger twitched nervously on the trigger.

"Yeah, sure…" was all Logan said since he'd noticed it. "Wanna see ya try it!" He narrowed his eyes even more and knew they were changing instantly. Soon, he would be gone and when he woke up again he wouldn't be able to remember anything again. Only the blood on his hands would give him a hint of what he'd done… His eyes noticed the gas grenade, which one of the soldiers threw at him and still he didn't move. As it exploded the part of the corridor was soon covered in thick fog and made it impossible to see anything.

"Fire!" the leader ordered and hell broke loose. Bullets were shooting non-stop from their weapons and they kept on doing it until he gave a sign, telling them to stop. The fog was nearly gone. They narrowed their eyes, still holding their guns close and waited until it was gone completely. Suddenly, they gasped. They were staring at the opposite wall covered with holes the bullets left; some of them still smoking. But otherwise the corridor was empty. "Where's he gone?" one of them asked panicky and looked around. "He can't disappear…" Slowly, the moved closer together while they checked their surroundings. "Keep your eyes open!" the leader advised them and pointed his weapon to and fro the wall and the only exit. "He's still here…" Their hearts raced in their chest. Unable to breath regularly they felt the sweat running down behind their helmets. They were warned about this. They'd been warned that they had to keep their eyes on him. And now here they stood and felt his eyes looking at them. But they couldn't make out his position. They only knew they had to be careful and ready. "Watch out," the leader whispered and stepped back until he touched the back of a teammate. "…he's very dangerous. If he attacks us he'll kill us merciless. You've heard what the Professor said!" They heard a low growl echoing through the basement, making it impossible for them to determine where their enemy was. "He's close by. I bet on it!"

"Yeah, and where?" another soldier asked back sarcastically. "I don't want my blood to give the walls a new painting." Jerkily, they jumped as a loud primal cry followed. Some of them had to open their helmets because their heavy breaths made it impossible for them to see anything. Their heart rate was more than out of control as the cry made its way to their ears again. As loud as it was before, everything went deadly still right afterwards. The only hearable sound was the water in the sewer on the other side of the wall. Sweating and swallowing their eyes wandered around, searching, looking for the mutant they were ordered to capture. They didn't see the mighty shadow right above their heads, nor the sparkling eyes that eyed its prey, shining like cat's eyes in the darkness. He was watching them, noticing every move they made, and knowing that they didn't have a chance. He was ready; they were not. He couldn't be killed, they could. Even if they knew his file there was still one thing they didn't know: He was long gone. And the animal within him had made its decision long ago before the first bullet had hit him…

With the wrath of an angry God, Wolverine jumped off the wall, on which he had lain in wait. With a 180° turn he landed right in the middle of the group, claws extracted. Before the soldiers could even realize what was happening, two of them were dead, while the rest tried to evade the deadly attacks. Growling and slashing, Wolverine made his way through them. They jumped at him, tried to bring him down, but each time they thought they'd make it the animal buried its claws into them. He ripped their flesh apart, spilled their blood on the ground, while he himself ignored the wounds their knives and bullets left. Captured in his furious rage, he sunk deeper and deeper into his animal form until only one of them was barely standing. Heavily breathing and his eyes so dark that they weren't even partly human, Wolverine turned towards him. Scared to death, the young unarmed soldier moved backwards. His eyes fixed on the draining blood of the claws; he fell to the ground losing his helmet. Panting and with widened eyes he kept on moving away from the berserker. Wolverine came slowly closer, eyes fixed on the young soldier, who was merely more than a boy. A low but threatening growl escaped his throat. The boy reached the wall with his back. Knowing that he had nowhere to go anymore, the panic and fear grew even more within him. He was not only scared; he had never felt so miserable before. His eyes switched briefly towards his dead comrades. He swallowed hard as a strong desire to puke came over him, not only caused by his panting and sweating. He didn't want to die, he didn't want to feel how this monster buried his claws in him, how he was slowly, but brutally ripped apart… "Please…" he heard someone begging before he realized that it was himself. "Don't kill me…" Without the slightest reaction Wolverine loomed closer, growling like an angry wolf while his eyes glowed threatening. He didn't cared about the tears of the boy, ignored his pleas and gave him only a scornful look as the boy kneeled down in front of him and begged for his merci. For him it was only an enemy, a boy who had dared to get into his way. With another even lower growl, the animal raised his claws above his head.

"No, please!" the boy shrieked and covered his face.

_A boy…_ All of a sudden, Wolverine froze. He blinked and looked at his opposite with a weird expression. His eyes showed that he was confused, but he couldn't tell why… Slowly, the boy looked up. _A boy…_it could be_ his _boy_…_ Confused, the soldier watched as the claws retracted. Frowning, he looked up. Two hazel, but still angry eyes looked back. "Piss off, boy!" Logan grunted.

"W…what!" his opposite asked in return, looking even more confused than before.

The man bent down. He fought against his patience, feeling that Wolverine was still not locked up into his cage. "I said piss…off!"

As quickly and fast as he could, the boy got up and ran away. Logan ran a hand through his face and waited. He made sure that the boy was really gone, before he turned his head towards the ground. His eyes saddened immediately and he snorted. He'd lost it again…

Hearing noises from further down the corridor he quickly began to look around. His eyes kept on searching until they finally found what he was looking for…

XXX

Bobby huffed and gave Jubilee a bored look. At least for three hours they had to listen to Scott's instructions in the meeting room. All he wanted was to do another Dangerroom instruction; one of those Logan always did with them. He saw no point in learning by listening to the guy in front of him. "Gosh, how long do we have to endure this?" He asked and Jubilee giggled.

"Better don't let him hear that!" She winked.

"Hey!" Scott's voice echoed louder through the room. "What's the matter?" He eyed Bobby and Jubilee suspiciously, waiting for an answer. "This is important. So stop talking and listen!"

"But why should we listen?" Bobby asked frustrated. "I'm not learning anything by listening only. I need to use my powers. Why don't we have Dangerroom instructions anymore?"

Scott snorted. "Ask your teacher who decided to head off to nowhere!" He was still angry with Logan, as most of the others were; especially Ororo who had to take care of his kids. Oh, he wished to see the scenery when Logan came back and ran into her first…

"He has a reason!" Jubilee protested and gave Scott any angry look.

"He has kids to take care of and responsibilities!" he shot back. "And as it seems he doesn't care!"

Jubilee jumped up, so did Kitty and Rogue. She hated it when they talked about him like that. "What the hell do you know?"

Scott slowly bent forward and put his hands on his desk. "What did you just say?" he asked her, giving her enough time to apologize. But he didn't know Jubilee as good as the others. They knew she wouldn't stop so soon. Not when it had to do with Logan.

"He does it for Jean. So what do you know!" she asked him again, even more angrily than before.

"Get out of my class!" Scott nearly shouted and pointed towards the door. "Apparently he did a great job in teaching you some respect."

Jubilee grabbed her backpack, knowing that the others would follow her. "Yeah, he did. I respect _him_!" With that she went out of the door and as she already had guessed before, Rogue, Kitty and Bobby followed her.

Scott watched them and shook his head. "What the hell did he teach you in this class?" he asked them angrily and made Bobby stop.

"Self-defense", he answered and folded his arms in front of his chest. The things Logan had taught them were far more useful than the non-stop lecture Scott gave them.

"Self-defense?" Scott smirked. "Sure that it was Logan and not a clone?" He doubted that Logan taught them self-defense… It was so completely not Logan-like. He loved to attack, was the best at it, as even Scott had to admit. But he couldn't believe that he taught them something he himself never used.

"Yeah, self-defense. Fighting without using our powers. He taught us to use objects in our surroundings in case that we had to defend ourselves inside a building in example." Self assured he looked into the face of his opposite. "Or didn't you know that he has a great knowledge of Asian fighting styles. I thought you lost against him?"

Scott narrowed his eyes. He bet it was Jubilee who told them. "I think we'll have a conversation with the Professor about this, don't you think?"

Bobby shrugged. "Good. Then I'll tell him that this here leads to nothing in case of an attack. What do you want us to do? Talk to Magneto until he gives up?" With one last look he followed his friends to the outside. He didn't care about the consequences. It was his opinion and he had enough of this talking lessons. Since Logan had left one week ago everyone was in more than a bad mood. He could understand him. He would have done the same for Rogue if he could and if he knew his child was in good hands. Of course it was typical for the grumpy mutant again that he took off without telling anyone, but Bobby thought he knew the reason.

Upstairs he followed his friends to the TV room. It didn't take long until they heard Storm shouting again.

"No, Hank! I have enough of it!" She yelled at the blue mutant in front of her while she cleaned the bottles in the kitchen. Angrily she put one bottle aside before she grabbed the next. Hank sighed, knowing that her bad mood wouldn't be over so soon. "Look, I asked you if I could help you."

"After one week I don't need any help!" she gave back even louder than before. "I'm sick of it. If he ever comes back I kill him, damn it."

"'Ro", he tried again and laid a hand on her shoulder, but she pulled away. "He is trying to help her. It wasn't okay to leave without leaving a note, fine, but think about Jean."

"And who thinks about me?" Storm shot back. "I'm the one who doesn't get sleep at night and who has to take care of two children because the father left."

Hank folded his arms in front of his chest and looked at her softly. "It's not because of your lack of sleep, is it?" he asked her more calmly and watched her. She supported herself against the counter and bent her head down, taking deep breaths to calm herself again. Frustrated, she ran a hand through her face. "You're worried. You scared that something has happened to him. Tell me if I'm wrong!" He heard her releasing a deep breath, before she took two new bottles with her.

"I'm tired, that's all!"

Frowning and with a worried look he watched her leave, knowing that there was far more behind her mask than she would ever admit…

XXX

Logan heard the shouts and machine-gun fire right behind him. He headed down the water in the sewer, trying to find a way out of the labyrinth. He cursed himself for being so soft on the boy before. Now even more soldiers were chasing him and they even had better weapons and dogs. The splashing of the water under his feet echoed through the sewer, telling them exactly where he was. Cursing, Logan stopped as the way forked. He had three directions to choose from. Panting and sweating in exhaustion, he sniffed. The only smell his nose got was the stink of the sewer. The splashing behind him became suddenly louder. Quickly, Logan turned around and saw two of the giant black dogs jumping at him. Their white teeth bared, ready to kill. Growling, he extracted one claw and killed one of them immediately, while the second got a firm grip on his arm. He nearly yelled as the teeth of the dog went even deeper into his flesh. Feeling the blood flow, he noticed the other two dogs coming closer and jumping at him too. Desperately trying to get the dog off his arm, he landed on the ground as the others buried their teeth in his leg and waist. Groaning and growling, while his eyes changed instantly, he managed to stab one dog. The loud howl that escaped the second animal as its blood was spilled on the ground helped the soldiers to find him. Cursing he smashed the next animal against the wall, feeling his skin being ripped off his waist, since the dog had a very firm grip on it. Three bullets hit him hard, causing him to fell down again. Logan panted heavily, feeling the exhaustion of the past week taking over. But he couldn't give up. He wouldn't. With an angry growl and without caring about the soldiers who already reached out to grab him, he jumped up and took the right way. His heart was racing and about to break his chest when he saw the exit far down the path. He already ran as fast as he could due to his several injuries. He knew his healing factor gave his power not to the healing anymore but to his body. Helping him to gather the last strength he'd left within him. Bullets were hitting his surroundings merciless. He heard explosions; their curses and their feet splashing on the ground as they were chasing him like an animal. Logan knew even if he got out of here, he was too far away from the point where he'd left his bike. He had to find another way back to the mansion. When he finally reached the ladder which lead to the surface, he jumped and grabbed it with his injured arms. "Stop him!" he heard them shouting, while he climbed up. His skin was ripped and injured again as more bullets hit him. If he got out of here, he'd surely suffer from a very bad headache the next day… Reaching the top of the ladder, Logan pushed the gully top away and felt fresh air stroking his face. He only had centimeters to go, as something hit him hard in the back. Falling down, he desperately clung to the ladder and pushed himself to his limits. Unable to feel as more things hit him, he finally reached the surface and stumbled to the ground. Logan shook his head panting, trying to get rid of the stars in front of his eyes. Confused he looked around. He couldn't even believe his luck as he recognized where he was. With the very last resources his body could offer him, he began to walk away as fast as he could…

XXX

Late in the evening, the X-Men were gathered in the kitchen for dinner. Bobby and his friends had just come back from a very frustrating meeting with the Professor. Of course Scott had immediately told him about his outburst during class and he had never seen the Professor so angry with him. Or should he rather say getting so angry with someone? Bobby sighed and kept his head low. He didn't want to look at Scott who sat at the head of the table right next to Storm and Hank. Still, the boy thought he was right. Surprised Bobby looked up when Rogue's hand touched his. Encouraging, she smiled at him, knowing what he was thinking about. He smiled back shortly, still feeling depressed. He'd never been the one to speak up if he didn't like anything. And the first time he did it in Scott's class he got punished… Still, he didn't care. He wondered if that was really Logan's doing. He remembered him telling him that his insecurities wouldn't help him during a battle or in real life. Either it was him or his enemy, his life or the other ones. He had to smile when he thought about how angry Logan had gotten after Bobby had been too insecure and afraid to state his opinion straight ahead because he had too much respect for the man. Suddenly, everyone looked up as Hank's plate fell sounding to the floor. Frowning, they looked at his shocked face, which was fixed on the door, before they, too, turned their heads: In the doorway stood Logan, heavily breathing in exhaustion and covered with blood. His clothes hang in shreds as if they'd been put into a shredder. "Jeez…" was all Hank was able to say, before he jumped up instinctively and caught Logan's fall. "God, boy, what happened to you?" He demanded, worried and frightened as he kneeled next to him. Curiously, he took the small objects from the man's hands, eyeing the liquid within it.

"Got it", was all Logan could say, before he finally gave in to the blackness, knowing that he had fulfilled his mission…

**Well, that was Chapter 35. Hope you liked it. Please review and let me know. ; )**

**If things go as I planned them, the next two chapters will be much longer. This time two nasty cliffies for ya. ; ) Just one question, since I know not everyone likes it: I wrote a love scene (nope I won't tell with whom ; ) ) but it contains no explicit words. You will know what they do, but I'm not going into detail. So, if some of you don't like such scenes, I will put a warning at the beginning of the scene. So you can stop reading there and go on after it. Just let me know if someone of you doesn't like it. ; ) Otherwise, hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know the last one was a bit lame. Chapter 37 will start with the action. ;) See ya!**


	37. Chapter 36

Thanks again Tamara for doing the beta: )

**Changes Chapter 36**

He opened his eyes slowly. Blinking and trying to realize where he was, Logan groaned and closed them quickly again. His head hurt like hell, causing stars to dance in front of his eyes. He figured out that he was lying in a bed, covered with sheets and had several bandages on his body. His healing factor was catching up with its work, making him feel dead drunk and very tired. Logan tried to breathe regularly to ease the pain as he heard a noise right next to him.

"I think he's awake!"

"Furball," Logan grunted calmly and grimaced in pain. "Stop yelling!" He ran a hand through his face and rested it on his eyes.

Hank grinned. "Someone has a bad headache, huh?" he asked a bit calmer, even if he hadn't really spoken loud before. "Good! It's the right punishment for you."

"Try to relax," the Professor, who sat on the other side of the bed, said and bent down. "I'll try to ease it a bit." He closed his eyes while he had his hands on both sides of Logan's head. Soon, the face of the mutant relaxed a bit. "Better?"

"Yeah…" Logan grunted and opened his eyes carefully. It still hurt but it was bearable now. He knew he was in a major healing and by the looks the others gave him he knew they were pretty pissed off. "Did it work?"

Hank shrugged. "Moira gave it to her right after you returned, but we have to wait. Nothing happened so far…" He looked at the mutant angrily. "Do you have any idea how stupid you are!"

"Well, I got it, didn't I?" Logan snapped back and sat up a bit, noticing the angry look of both men even more. "Look, I…"

"We were worried like hell, boy!" Hank said louder, not caring about the headache of his opposite anymore, who had immediately winced as he'd raised his voice. "How could you do that?"

"I told you to be patient, Logan," the Professor said more calmly, but still his voice spoke volumes. "You could have been killed. This was a complete suicide mission…" He gave him a disappointed but very angry look.

"As long as it helps her, I don't care!" Logan shot back and narrowed his eyes.

"You should care!" Hank gave back. "We thought something happened to you, since you were gone for a week. 'Ro had to take care of YOUR children all by herself and Scott had to do YOUR classes. Is it too much to ask for if you could have given us one damn call?" He took a deep breath and sighed in frustration. "We thought you were dead or captured. Do you care so much for your friends and children that you take off at night without leaving even a note?"

Logan's head had shot up into Hank's direction by the mentioning of Jack and Lily. His eyes, despite the fact that he was more than tired, sparkled angrily and darkened. "Why do you think I left, eh?" he asked them angrily. "For _them_!"

"You could have waited a bit longer," Charles said meeting his gaze.

"How much longer?" his opposite asked in return. "You said it yourself that there was no guarantee that she would wake up. So how much longer do you wanted me to wait? One year? Five years?" Furiously, he followed the Professor's movement as he maneuvered his wheelchair around the bed towards Hank's side. "I don't want her to miss so much!"

Hank sighed. "We know that! But it doesn't change the fact that you left us scared to death here…"

"I didn't say anything because I knew you'd disagree."

"And I'd reasons for it!" Hank gave back angrily and jumped up. "Look what they've done to you, boy! They nearly killed you!" Both men looked at each other with hatred, since they were equally stubborn.

"Logan," Charles said calmly. "I know you did it for your family. But leaving without telling anyone about your whereabouts and forgetting about your responsibilities here… It shouldn't surprise you that we're reacting in this way." He looked at him closely. "You pushed your body so far that you were unconscious for three days. You didn't even start healing until a few hours ago… And what for? For trying something which might not even work…"

"It's worth trying for me!" Logan grunted coldly.

"Did they attack you on your way out?" Hank suddenly asked to change the heating debate into another direction.

"Yeah." His opposite said and cracked his neck. "They caught me while I destroyed the data on it."

"I see," Hank nodded thinking.

"Where have you been anyway?" Charles asked him curiously. "I couldn't locate you through Cerebro."

"Warren's dad." Logan answered and leant his head back on the pillow again, feeling more and more light headed. "This crazy scientist of his… I wonder if he knows about all the stuff he does."

"Why?" the blue mutant asked frowning and bent forward, sensing that it wouldn't take long until his friend would fall asleep again.

"He does some strange stuff in his lab. He also has some mutants down there, hidden in rooms. Those damn soldiers were ordered to capture me."

"Told you so! If they find out about abilities…" Hank said in his best lecturer tone but was cut off by him.

"Yeah, yeah…save it!" Logan waved off and closed his eyes again.

The blue mutant smirked. At least he could tell that Logan felt bad about making them worry so much. Still, he wanted to make him feel worse. "How did you escape? We'd to shower you three times and buried your clothes because you smelled so…nice." He gave the Professor a short look. Even he had to smile for a brief moment.

Logan looked at them with a cocked eyebrow. He knew what they were up to. "Sewer."

"Yeah, that's what we thought," Hank nodded. "Well, if some parts of you are still itching, then we've missed some bullets in your skin."

"Furball," Logan said warningly. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Hank smirked. "I hope so! Because next time when you feel like taking off again, I'll chase you down personally and make sure you're not healing so fast!"

"There'll be no next time," Logan said sleepily and winced as he moved a bit. Gritting his teeth he lay stock-still and waited for the pain to ease.

"Good to hear that," the Professor said. "You should sleep a bit more until you're completely recovered." He moved towards the door. "And don't expect too many hearty welcomes tomorrow!"

"Especially not from 'Ro!" Hank said warningly. "She's so pissed off at you. Flowers won't do, my friend."

"I'll keep that it mind." Logan watched them leave. "Thanks", he added calmly.

The two men turned around one last time and nodded with a half smile, before they closed the door behind them.

He sighed and ran a hand over his face again. He knew about Storm's mood even if the others hadn't told him about. The first thing he'd noticed after he'd woken up was the thunderstorm on the outside. Logan's hand stretched out to turn the light off again. Closing his eyes tiredly, he went back to sleep.

XXX

On the next day and after another shower, Logan walked down the corridor towards her room. His nose told him that she was inside. He prepared himself for any scenario and recalled Hank's warning words again. Carefully, Logan opened the door and went inside. He found her at the window, looking at the still raging thunderstorm on the outside, which suddenly appeared to get even worse. Storm knew immediately it was him. She didn't turn around or even looked at his mirage in the window. Her heart raced in her chest because of the anger she felt for him. Logan had already taken notice of the drastic weather change. He knew it was because of him… Unsure what he could say he stepped closer. His hands buried into his jeans pockets, he thought about some words for her. "'Ro…" Logan began, but she walked past him an out of the room without even looking at him.

He sighed, knowing that this would become harder than he'd thought. Still, Hank had warned him…and he'd face the consequences of his actions now. Slowly, he walked towards the door again and down the corridor. Hoping that at least one thing went right today, he pushed the button of the elevator and headed down to the basement.

XXX

"What an honor!" Scott looked towards the door as it opened and Logan entered. Arms crossed in front of his chest, he looked at him angrily.

"Save it!" his opposite grunted and looked through the window. Everything was still the same…nothing had changed.

"I suppose you haven't met 'Ro already? Otherwise I doubt you'd be able to stand."

Logan sighed in annoyance. "I met her, bub!"

Scott smirked while he still leant against the wall; watching him piercingly. "And? Did she give you a good kick in the butt? Otherwise, I'd like to do it!"

"Wanna see ya trying it!" Logan gave back and met his eyes. "I already said I'm sorry, what more do you want me to do?"

"I want you to think about your friends and family the next time, Logan!" the other man said and glanced shortly at Jean. "We were worried. You scared especially Rogue and 'Ro to death. Bobby was afraid that Rogue might have a miscarriage because she kept on crying since we haven't heard anything of you." Logan sighed and broke eye contact. "You have more responsibilities than only Jean." Scott took a deep breath to calm himself again. "You know," he began without looking at his opposite, but noticing that he watched him. "One word would have been enough!"

Logan wrinkled his brows. He had no idea what that guy was talking about. "One word and what?"

"I would have helped you!" Scott said more calmly meeting his eyes again.

The other man smirked and gave a derisive laugh. "Yeah, sure! Especially because we're such close buddies…"

"I wouldn't have done it for you, Logan!" he heard him continue. "I would have done it for Jean. You're not the only one who cares for her. Don't forget that!" He noticed the slight trace of anger and jealousy in his opposite's eyes. "It makes me sick to see her like that…" he shook his head while he supported himself against the window; his eyes resting on Jean. "I only hope your thing will do."

Logan's eyes switched towards his lover. Caressing her gently with his eyes, he hoped the same. "Catch this!" he suddenly heard Scott say and saw him throwing something at him. With a cocked eyebrow he looked at the small black box. "What the…?"

"I wanted to give her it after I took the Professor to Magneto's cell," Scott explained bitterly and buried his hands into his pockets. "Well, you know the rest of the story, don't ya?" He met Logan's confused eyes. "If she hadn't died back then…" he broke off.

"And now you want me to do what exactly with it," his opposite asked him confused.

Scott turned around, ready to leave. "You'll know when you open it, Logan. I've no use for it anymore…so make sure you use it! Or I'll take my chances with her again!" With that the door closed behind him and he was gone. Still not sure what his favorite archenemy meant with all the talking, Logan opened the small black box and immediately his heart kicked into high gear…

XXX

Since he left the basement after Moira told him that it was useless to wait, Logan wandered around the mansion. Aware that a thunderstorm still raged on the outside, he didn't dare to start one of his beloved strolls at night; he had to stay inside like a dog bound to its kennel. Sighing in frustration, he noticed that he'd reached the kitchen again. Even if the mansion looked huge from the outside, to him it was a tiny cage tonight. Still, he could use a beer…

"Hey!" Logan greeted Bobby who was sitting on one stool and ate ice cream again. He wondered how this boy could eat so much of this stuff without looking like Blob by now.

"Hi", the boy said and swallowed another spoon. "No beer left! Storm threw it away."

Rolling his eyes, Logan closed the fridge again. "Great!" He went over to the cupboard and took a soda out of it. Immediately, Bobby held out his hand. Smirking, the grown up handed the warm bottle over, just to see it returned to him ice cold. "Thanks!" He sat down on a stool opposite to him. "Heard you got thrown out of class."

"Yeah…" the boy nodded and lowered his head. He knew that Logan would start with it. "I'm sorry about it. But Scott's talking…"

"I know. It's pretty annoying," Logan waved off. "Still you shouldn't have done it. It only gets you into trouble."

Bobby looked up. "Well, you told me to speak up if I disagree with something. And besides…I thought you were right." Logan cocked an eyebrow at him, waiting for him to go on. "I mean, I would have done the same for Marie…if I could."

His opposite smirked. "Thanks, but still you got yourself into a lot of trouble."

Bobby shrugged and swallowed another spoon. "Already written the essay. So I don't care."

"What was the subject?" Logan asked, trying to cheer him up a bit. "_Why I shouldn't annoy one eyed teachers_? Answer's easy. Because he cries all night."

The boy smirked and shook his head in amusement. "Something like that."

Logan took a sip from his bottle, feeling the ice-cold liquid running down his throat. "How's Rogue?"

"Good. She was pretty scared after you'd left, but she's fine now."

"Sorry for that!" Logan excused and turned the bottle in his hand lost in thoughts. He knew he had caused a lot of damage; still he had to do it. He couldn't wait any longer…

Suddenly his nose caught a well-known smell and he turned his head, meeting blue eyes, which stared back at him in anger. Storm snorted and left. "Excuse me," Logan said quickly, before he put his bottle down and followed her.

He ran down the corridor after her and grabbed her arm. "Wait!"

Storm's eyes shined white for a brief moment. Furiously, she pushed him away and turned around again. Gritting his teeth, Logan took hold of her again. Noticing that he was standing right next to the room he used to sleep in, while the kids were upstairs with her, he opened the door and pushed her inside. Before he was able to close the door again, she already was on her way outside. "'Ro wait!" Logan said aloud and grabbed her arm once more. Immediately, he felt her hand hitting his cheek hard.

"Let me go!" she hissed and her eyes were white again, causing a lightning bolt to lighten up the room briefly. Pulling while trying to push him away, Storm tried to get rid off him.

"Listen to me," he began more calmly, but still holding her arms in a firm grip.

"Let me go!" she yelled at him and all of a sudden hell broke lose on the outside. A loud _kraboom_ echoed through the whole mansion, causing the windows to vibrate violently. Furiously, she fought against and yelled at him, while Logan tried to calm her. As she began to hit him again, he took, after several futile tries, hold of her hands and pinned her to the wall. "Damn it, 'Ro, stop it!" he cursed and looked at her angrily. "Yell at me as long as you want, but stop hitting me!" Heavily breathing in anger, her eyes were fixed on him. Telling him how mad she was with him, how much she wanted to hurt him in return for the pain she'd to endure because of him. He saw the anger, disappointment, and pain mirrored in her eyes and didn't know what to do about it. "I'm sorry…"

"I don't give a shit, Logan!" Storm hissed through gritted teeth. "You're a fucking asshole!" Again she fought against him with all her strength, but his grip was too firm. "You're hurting me, damn it!" she yelled at him and drove the weather even crazier if still possible. He only waited for the windows to shatter…

"Well, I would let you go if you stopped acting like that!" Logan shot back and loosened his grip on her. Immediately, she gave him a slap round the face again and pushed him away. Growling, he watched her how she walked over to the window heavily breathing in rage. He, too, fought against Wolverine; desperately trying to keep him in his cage. He knew what would happen if he got out… Slowly and after taking a very deep breath, he came closer. Keeping a distance between them, he stopped behind her. Storm had wrapped her arms around her body. Every muscle was tensed and she still breathed heavily. Not knowing what to do without making her even angrier, Logan waited for her to calm.

"Do you even care?" she suddenly asked through gritted teeth. Swallowing hard she tried to get rid off the thick lump in her throat. She wouldn't start crying. Definitely not…

"About what?" he asked in return, unsure what exactly she meant.

"That people care about you? That they worry about you?" She answered his question.

"'f course I do," he said and buried his hands in his pockets.

Ororo nodded slowly. "Of course you do," she repeated sarcastically and bit her lip while her heart nearly broke her chest. "Of course you do!" she suddenly yelled at him after turning around. "If you cared you wouldn't have left your children or us! You don't care, Logan. You're still the bastard who only thinks about himself, who doesn't care that people are scared to death that you might be already dead!" Tears were running down her cheek, while her eyes mirrored her hate. She hated him for what he'd done… "I was wrong about you," she sobbed and raised a hand. "You're the fucking asshole I thought you were when I first met you. You didn't change one bit!"

"Come off it!" he yelled back and made her wince for a brief moment. "I left for Jean!"

She shook her head. "You left your children alone! You're a damn egoist, nothing more!"

With his hands on his hips he snorted scornful. "You think that eh?" he asked her in return while his eyes darkened. "I did it for my children. Not for me! And I wouldn't have left if they'd not been in good hands!"

"Do you really believe that?" Storm shot back aloud. "I didn't take care of them for you! I took care of them because someone had to. Otherwise they'd be dead by now!" Again she shouted at him. Furiously, she grabbed his collar and made him look at her. "It was your damn job, Logan! Not mine! You're their father; it's your responsibility, NOT mine!"

"I know that, damn it!" he hissed and tried to get rid off her. "But do you think I want Jean to wake up one day and the kids are already grown ups? Or that I want my kids to watch their mother dying?" He looked into her eyes, showing her how angry he was inside, while she was still crying and sobbing.

"And do you think I want to look down on your dead body again? Do you know what it felt like back then!" she yelled in despair while her heart was racing unstoppable. She shook him. "Do you know that you looked exactly the same when you stood in the kitchen before you collapsed? That I thought you were dead?" Heavily sobbing now she bent her head and looked down; her hands still holding his collar.

"I know what it feels like," Logan gave back through gritted teeth. "Jean died in my arms, remember?"

Ororo shook her head and took deep breaths. "Especially then you should care a bit more! Because there are people here who care a lot for you!" She looked up into his eyes, while tears were still running down her cheeks. The whole pain she'd to endure was mirrored in them now. Against her will, she got lost in his hazel pools, which stared back at her in sympathy.

"I'm sorry, 'Ro. But I had to do it," Logan said calmly and wiped away her tears gently. When she sobbed again, he took her into his arms and tried to calm her. Storm rested her head against his chest and stared at the wall. Her heart was still beating strongly, while her emotions were running wild. She couldn't tell him how much he'd scared her. How worried she was that she might never see him again. In fact she wasn't angry with him because he'd left and she'd to take care of his children. Her fear was far stronger in its origin. She could never endure it again to see him dying, to lose him without being able to help him. And in the moment he'd collapsed in the kitchen she thought it. She'd believed due to his many injuries and all the blood that he was dying. While Hank and Scott had kneeled down next to him, she had only been able to sit on her chair, shaking all over in fear and stare down on his torn body…she'd really believed she'd lost him again. Again she sobbed hard and clung to his shirt, while Logan kept on stroking her back and hair.

"I'm sorry," he assured her calmly again, not knowing how much he really meant to her. Not knowing how much it hurt her to know that there would never be more than this friendly gesture; that he belonged to someone else.

Slowly, Ororo looked up and met his eyes again. Logan still held her close, but had stopped stroking her back. "Don't do it again," she whispered pleadingly.

"I won't," he answered and shook his head. Seeing that tears were still running down her cheeks, he raised a hand and wiped them away again. He only noticed a shadow when she moved as she suddenly pulled him into a deep kiss. Unable to react first, he felt her soft lips caressing his for a moment, before she pulled away again. He noticed the sadness within her eyes, but didn't say anything. He was too surprised by her actions. Gently, she stroked his cheeks. "I'm sorry," Storm suddenly said before she turned around and left him even more confused than before.

Standing on the same spot for quite some time, Logan shook his head sighing. He really had a knack for causing trouble… Turning his head toward the windows he noticed that rain had set in. At least the thunderstorm had stopped, he thought and closed the curtains. Sitting down on his bed he stared at the door brooding. Things could only become even more complicated… Sighing again, he laid down on his bed and hoped he would find sleep this night…

XXX

The door opened slowly and someone entered Logan's dark room. The light was turned on and immediately the intruder froze. The eyes fixed on the bed, the person came slowly closer and stopped right in front of it. The person, who was lying in bed suddenly awoke with a start and looked up, blinking in confusion against the bright light. Soon, realization and shock were mirrored on the face.

"Oh my God," Storm shrieked and jumped up. Her chin dropped when she looked at her opposite in shock. "Jean…" she gasped and covered her hand with her mouth, while tears were gathering in her eyes. "My God, Jean…" she embraced her friend tightly and began to sob heavily, while Jean didn't show any emotion. Storm let go. With her hands on her friend's shoulder she looked at her. She couldn't believe that she was really standing in front of her. "I…I can't believe it…" she said happily. "God, he will be so happy!"

"Will he?" Jean asked her coldly and caused her opposite to step back in confusion.

"Of course," Ororo said. "What makes you think he wouldn't…?" Suddenly, it hit her. "Oh, you don't think that…"

"What else should I think if you're lying in his bed?" Jean asked her sarcastically. Her blood was boiling despite her confusion and sorrow.

"Jean, I was watching over them," Storm explained calmly. "I must have fallen asleep." Storm looked down her opposite's body. "Look at you," she gasped in shock. "How is that possible?"

Jean shrugged while her eyes saddened. "How long was I gone?"

"Almost four and a half weeks," Storm answered. "It must be his healing factor, but…"

The red head furrowed her brows. "What do you mean?"

Her opposite looked up again. "Logan took off and let his healing factor be extracted. It saved you, but still…"

"You mean," Jean began and cut her off again, feeling completely confused now, "that I got a healing factor now?"

"Temporary, I think that's why your body looks the same as before your pregnancy," Storm said and noticed that Jean winced. "So that's why Logan always looks the same." She'd always wondered how he could eat and drink so much without gaining weight even if he didn't train regularly.

"Where's he?" she heard her suddenly ask barely audible. Something was wrong with her; Ororo sensed it.

"Downstairs. He sleeps in the room at the end of the corridor next to the elevators. He can't hear them there. Otherwise he'd never sleep." Watching her friend worriedly she asked herself why Jean looked so confused and hurt. As if she was in deep pain. Jean nodded slowly and turned around. "Jean?" Storm said aloud and made her look at her again. "It's so good to have you back. He was so scared and missed you so much…"

With one last empty look at her opposite, Jean left the room before Ororo could have the chance to ask her what was bothering her so much.

XXX

Carefully, she opened the door downstairs and slipped into the nearly completely dark room. Her heart began to beat triple rhythms as she saw him lying on the bed. She could tell that he was deeply asleep. Slowly, she walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed. Her eyes were fixed on him. It appeared to her as if she hadn't seen him in years. After she'd woken up, she was confused… Her body was thin again while she felt strong, but also empty. She remembered all the blood, knew as a doctor what it meant. She only hoped he could forgive her… Slowly, Jean reached out and touched him. She didn't even dare to imagine what he'd been through because of her again. Lost in thought, she gently stroked his cheek. She could tell that she'd missed him…

All of a sudden, Logan sat up alarmed and blinked. His eyes needed some time to adjust to the dark room. He knew someone was sitting right next to him. He had grabbed the hand of his unwanted visitor harshly, when he'd woken up. It was clearly female… He sniffed and immediately his heart rate kicked even more into high gear as he recognized the smell. Afraid that he was dreaming, he reached out and turned on the light. He was even more shocked when he really stared into these beautiful green eyes, which he'd missed so much. Unable to move or even react, he just sat in the bed and looked at her, while he loosened the grip on her hand.

"Hey…" she said, her voice barely more than a whisper. Quickly, she was pulled down and suddenly sat on his lap, while he wrapped his arms around her tightly. Jean felt his breath on her neck when he buried his face on her shoulder, clinging to her as if he was drowning. She pulled him even closer; feeling his muscles tense under her touch, as she suddenly seemed to switch bodies, when their mental link kicked in again. His emotions, thoughts and memories of the past weeks floated into her and overwhelmed her completely. She felt his despair, his fear and sorrow, the sadness and happiness he felt now… Tears were running down her cheeks as Jean caught the memory of the loneliness he'd felt even if the others were around him. She couldn't believe how much he'd missed her, how much he'd longed for her… Jean felt her shoulder and neck getting wet when she realized that he was crying as much as she was. It broke her heart that she made him suffer so much again. "I'm sorry," she only whispered and buried her face in his neck.

He didn't say a word or even move. The only thing he did was holding her tight and feeling the weight lifted off his shoulder and heart when he finally felt complete again… He heard her desperate sobs, felt her body shake violently, while she begged him to forgive her. Confused he took her head into his hands and met her eyes. "Forgive what?" Logan asked her softly and stroked her cheeks. She looked so miserable, so afraid and hurt. He wondered what she meant, why he should forgive her…

"That I've lost them," she cried heavily and buried her head into his shoulder again, while she clung to him.

"Lost whom, Jeannie?" he asked her softly and pulled the picture of misery close.

"Our babies…" she said between several sobs and cried even louder.

"Hell, Jean, no!" Logan took her head into his hands again, while he shook his heavily. "No!"

Complete confusion was mirrored in her face. Through wet and red eyes she looked at him. Her memories couldn't be wrong. There had been blood, lots of blood. And pain. She remembered especially the pain well. She was convinced she'd a miscarriage. "But," she began barely audibly while his hands caressed her back. "…the blood…"

"No!" he shook his head again. "The twins are fine. Hank and Moira did a surgery in the last second."

"But there's no scar and my body…" Jean said despaired getting more and more confused.

He smiled at her. "Because of the healing factor. I…"

"Yeah, 'Ro told me." She could still feel the shock after seeing her in his bed.

"You saw her?" Logan asked knowing what she must have thought. "Look, she helped me with the kids. Nothing more." Pushing the kiss in the back of his head, he gently stroked her cheek.

She placed a loving kiss on his lips, before she rested her head against his. She couldn't tell him how relieved but confused she felt at the same time. "I know."

"But you thought it first?" he teased her, knowing that she must have been jealous.

"Yeah." Jean smiled feeling caught.

Logan moved a bit, shifting her into another position. He looked at her, noticed every part of her, memorized it and wished this moment would last forever. He couldn't express how happy he was to have her back…that it really worked or how happy he was to hear her voice again, to be able to look at her again. "Wanna see them?" He lifted her up while he got of the bed. Jean shrieked in surprise and felt his lips on hers, before he took her hand in his and led her out of the room.

Logan advised her to stay calm after they'd reached his old room door. Cautiously, he opened it, seeing Ororo lying in the bed sleeping. He led Jean towards the second room door, which Hank and Peter put into the wall and stood open. He closed it behind them again. The small lamp on the bedside table was just enough to lighten up the room a bit. Insecure, Jean still stood at the door. "Come here!" Logan said barely audible and nodded towards the two cradles. She couldn't remember if she'd ever been so nervous in her life before. Her heart raced and her throat felt completely dry. Looking into his eyes, she came slowly closer until she stopped right next to him. Nervously, Jean lowered her gaze. She immediately held her breath and smiled softly as she looked at the two tiny babies who were sleeping. Logan gently wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and rested his head on her left shoulder, while he also looked down. "Lily and Jack," he said and pulled her even closer. "You fine with it?"

She nodded, while she suppressed a sob. Her hands resting on his arms, she leant back. She couldn't tell him how relieved and happy she felt. Before, she was concerned that she'd lost them. She'd felt so empty, was afraid that it would destroy their relationship. Smiling, Jean silently let her tears flow. She still couldn't believe that these tiny beings were her babies…their babies. She wondered what she'd missed in the past weeks…

"You alright?" Logan whispered and caressed her neck.

Jean nodded. "I just can't believe," she began and turned around in his grip; looking into his loving eyes. "That they are really ours."

Logan shrugged playfully. "If you see how much they can eat, you'll be pretty soon convinced."

She smiled, before she turned around and gently stroked over their cheeks. With a last loving look, Jean looked at him again. "Let's go back to bed." He nodded and pulled her back into his arms.

Back in the room downstairs, Logan closed the door behind him and turned around. Surprised, he looked at her after she's kissed him passionately and pulled him close. Her caressing sent chills down his body. After all this time without her, his body reacted even faster to her touching than before. "Jean…" he said between several kisses. Finally, he took hold of her hands and pushed her gently away.

Confused, she looked at him. "What's wrong?"

He laid a hand on her cheek. "Take it easy, okay?" Logan said calmly. "You just woke up and have been through hell…"

Offended, she lowered her gaze. As a doctor she'd heard that some men reacted that way after their partner gave birth. But she'd never thought he would reject her. "You didn't want me because…"

"Hell, no!" Logan cut her off and shook his head. He didn't even know how she could even think that. Pulling her close again, he kissed her softly. "I want you more than anything, Jeannie. You know that. It's just," he pulled a strand out of her face. "We can wait." It cost him all his strength to withstand her. He wanted her so badly, longed with every fiber of his body for her. It had been too long without her… Within less than a second, she pulled him down again, showing him that she wanted it as badly as he did. That she didn't want to wait. Teasing him with her mouth, while her hands were all over his body, she pressed her hips against his. Sucking in the air through gritted teeth, he had no longer to be convinced. Quickly, Logan turned around and pushed her against the door. He smelled her arousal; knew that she was as excited as he was. The sight of her alone was enough to give him one…

Jean closed her eyes in excitement as he caressed the soft skin on her neck with his lips and tongue. Her hands entwined in his dark hair she pulled him closer, tilting her head to give him better access. Logan nibbled on her neck, traced his way down to her shoulders. She leant against the door and stroked his hair while her heart was beating strongly in her chest. He pulled her shirt over her head just to leave more love bites on her pale skin. His hands gently stroked her back and ribs, making her shiver all over. Already heated, she leant her head back again and rested it against the door, just to be pulled into another deep kiss by him in the next second. Jean laid one hand on his neck and pulled him close. Nibbling and sucking on his lower lips, she teased him until a passionate moan left his throat. She felt his heart beating as strongly against his chest as hers did and soon she realized that he, too, was good in teasing. His tongue caressed hers, fought with it while his hand touched and stroked her breasts barely noticeable. Impatiently, she pulled his tank shirt over his head and began to leave love bites on her own. Sharply, Logan sucked in new air and closed his eyes panting, while he felt her tongue and lips on his neck. Slowly, and not stopping the teasing and caressing, they tumbled over to the bed, leaving the rest of their clothes on the ground.

Logan kissed his way down to her belly. Feeling her muscled tense as his hands went deeper. Still, he didn't touch her center, which made her sigh in frustration. Smirking, he worked his way up again, intentionally only touching her most sensitive parts. Stroking her, teasing her, watching her burn with desire, while he heard her contentedly groans, made him ache even more for her. Jean pulled him down for another passionate kiss, before she rolled him over. On top now, she lasciviously smirked down on him, telling him with one look only that it was her turn now. He knew instantly, that he would suffer…

Her hand wandered up and down his sensitive spots while her lips placed kisses everywhere. He immediately moaned softly, when her hands came closer to his center. Still, he knew that she would seek revenge. She came close enough to make him arch up, touched him until his muscles tensed and he thought he couldn't be more aroused, but not daring to do what he wanted so badly. With a seductive smile she looked down on him again. Slowly, she began to move her hips, rubbing against him, while watching pleasurable as he bit his lips and closed his eyes. Now he knew what real suffering meant…

Suddenly, she stopped and he watched her in surprise. With a cocked eyebrow he looked into her heated face. Her eyes shined with desire and lust. Smirking and telling him straight ahead that her part was not over, she bent down. Logan grabbed the sheets hard, while groaning contentedly. Panting, he threw his head back and closed his eyes again, as her tongue touched his very center and most sensitive part. Slowly, she licked her way downwards, leaving him even harder than he already was before, but stopped when he arched up and his muscles tensed again. "Vixen," Logan cursed heavily breathing and earned a seductive smile from her. Quickly, he had grabbed her and rolled over; pinning her hands over her head to the mattress. After a deep passionate kiss, he looked at her smirking. Licking and caressing her neck and breast, while she moved her hip against his, one hand stroked its way down. Touching and teasing her around her very centre. Immediately, she arched up against him as he reached his target. Chuckling, he mentally sent a warning _my turn_ into her direction. Jean looked at him with a questioning look, since he still held her hand captive over her head with one hand. Moaning, she arched up against him again and buried herself into the mattress, when he'd found her wet opening. "Jeez, Logan…" she panted and threw her head back in pleasure again as he switched from stroking to pulling two fingers in and out slowly; feeling her moisture. Sucking on her lip made her moaning even louder and she hoped no one could hear her. He knew she wasn't far from exploding as she began to meet his movements. Hearing her groan in frustration, he drew his hand back again and bent down for another kiss. She'd still her eyes closed, was heated up to her maximum and shivered in passion, as he intertwined his hands with hers, placing each next to her blushed head. "Look at me," Logan said hoarsely and she obeyed. In both eyes laid so much love, passion and longing that their hearts even gained speed. Both saw how much the other wanted the partner; how far they'd pushed the other already. Shortly after their eyes had met, he buried himself deep within her, causing her to cry in passion. Arching up against him once more, Jean threw her heads back as her feelings overwhelmed her. She already was too close…

"No," Logan said panting, trying to keep his control. "Look at me!" Tightening the grip on his hands, which still pinned her to the mattress, she met his eyes again. Slowly, he began to move, gave her time to adjust to him again. As soon as he felt her legs on his back and her meeting him, he began to speed up; grounding him against her small form. Hearing her panting and moaning in passion, seeing her sweating and blushed face and feeling her tightness and wetness, while he kept his hazel eyes on her green ones, Logan realized more than ever how much he'd missed her. How much he loved and longed for her. Once more he gave her everything. Mixed his emotions and thoughts with hers, while she gave him hers. Both got completely overwhelmed from it; thinking that they'd to die of a heart attack as it gained speed and nearly broke their chests.

Feeling her muscles contracting around him, Logan tightened his grip on her hands once more, while thrusting harder. Both looked at each other and nearly had to scream, as the release finally came and caused their world to blacken for a brief moment. Heavily breathing, he buried his head on her neck, while she threw it back against the mattress shaking allover. Desperately trying to calm their racing hearts, they began to shiver as the aftershocks set in. "Softie," Jean teased him and pulled him closer with her arms and legs as she noticed that he was crying, realizing that she did the same again.

Logan looked up and stroked her face gently. She saw his pain and relief within his hazel pools. "I missed you so much," he admitted barely audible and made her smile sadly. Pulling him down for another loving kiss, she buried his head in her shoulder again and he pulled her slim body closer.

"I love you…" Jean only said, stroking his back gently.

Realizing that they were still joined, Logan closed his eyes and his thoughts immediately drifted off to the small black box Scott had given to him earlier. His heart began to race again and he realized that he wanted it… Even if he'd never imagined it before, he wanted it. He realized that it was the only thing he still wished for. After all those years alone out there, without a home, going from place to place without any memory, he'd finally found a home. A home he loved. After using woman for one night only, he'd found a partner who loved him, who accepted and understood both sides of him…and who'd given him the greatest honor possible…his children. He was convinced that he really wanted it. He wanted her to be his and wanted to be hers in return…

Slowly, Logan raised his head and met her eyes. Noticing the change within his, Jean began to worry. "What's wrong?" she asked concerned and touched his cheek gently.

Logan looked down for a brief moment, thinking about his thoughts again, while his heart nearly broke his chest by now. Swallowing hard, he met her eyes briefly. "Be my wife," was all he said, before he looked into her shocked face again.

_Sorry that it took a bit longer, but I had a really hard time to write this chapter. I had the beginning with Hank, Charles and Logan and the ending with Jean and Logan, but I couldn't come up with anything for the middle part. I wanted Storm and Logan to have a rather small fight, but everything I wrote didn't really fit it. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and thanks for the nice reviews again: ) It's the longest chapter so far. 21 pages. : ) Oh, and please be kind, it was the first love scene I've ever written. ; )_


	38. Chapter 37

**Changes Chapter 37**

"Hey! Leave some bread for the others!" Jubilee protested and gave Peter a look.

"Well, I'm hungry," the huge boy shrugged and took another piece making a total of six.

"You really are a glutton, ya know that?" The girl shook her head and smirked at Kitty who was watching them. "You should think about changing codenames with Wolvie. Bobby's always eating the whole ice-cream and Logan the M&M's lately…so what's left for us girls? Nothing!"

"You would gain too much weight anyway, Jubes! Better stick to bread and water." Bobby winked and ducked as she threw her serviette into his direction.

"Ah, you…" Jubilee began but was cut off by Moira who stormed into the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" Scott immediately asked worriedly and got up. Hoping that his bad feeling hadn't had anything to do with Jean.

"She's gone! Jean is gone!" the woman shrieked out of breath.

"She's…she's dead?" Hank asked shocked and looked at her with widened eyes.

"No," the woman shook her head. "I meant…she's not longer in the lab. She's gone. I can't find her anywhere."

Scott came closer, his eyes fixed on her in disbelief. "That's impossible! She was in a deep coma yesterday before I left."

"That's the point!" Moira said scared. "She can't have left alone…"

Ororo entered the kitchen taking notice of her friends. Confused she stopped and stared at the others. "What's wrong?" she asked and stepped closer.

"Jean's gone from the lab." Scott explained briefly and walked past her towards the door. "I'll go get the Professor. Hank, you go and check on Mystique!" He said and left followed by the blue mutant and Moira, while Bobby and Jubilee jumped off their chairs. "We go and get Logan!"

Ororo wanted to grab Hank's hand as he walked past her. "Wait, Jean's…" she began but the others were quicker and already gone. "…fine…" Sighing, she shook her head and sat down next to Kitty and Peter who looked at her in surprise. The woman only shrugged, thinking that they would soon take notice of it and began to eat breakfast.

XXX

"I think he's in here," Jubilee said out of breath and stopped in front of the door next to the elevators.

"You sure?" Bobby asked skeptically and wrinkled his brows.

She nodded. "He always sleeps in here if he's not upstairs. And since he wasn't upstairs…"

He nodded playfully. "Good deduction! Is there anything you don't know about him by the way?" He asked and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"Ah, stop mocking me!" she cried and waved off. "Better prepare yourself for an outburst of him! If he gets to know that Jean's gone…" With one last worried look at her friend she opened the door cautiously. Carefully and already preparing herself for the worst, she stepped into the room. The sun shined through the thick curtains and lightened up the room just enough for her to see where she was going. She stumbled as her feet caught some clothing on the floor. Confused she looked down as she suddenly heard someone turning in the bed; followed by a deep sigh. With a cocked eyebrow she approached the bed.

Bobby still stood at the door and was watching her. He knew what Logan was like when he got really mad. And he was absolutely convinced that he would become more than it… Suddenly, he saw Jubilee turning around with a wide grin on her face. "What?" he asked her in confusion and looked at her as she closed the door again.

XXX

"Mystique's still there," Hank said when he reentered the kitchen together with Moira and Scott.

"The Professor is going to use Cerebro. Maybe he can detect her with it." He lowered his head. Arms crossed in front of his chest he leant back against the fridge. "She can't be just gone," he grunted and ran a hand through his hair. "I mean…why would she leave?"

Hank shrugged. "Maybe it's not her, but Dark Phoenix again we're dealing with. If Jean got weakened she could have taken over…and that means we're in a lots of trouble!"

Ororo snorted and kept on eating her breakfast. She wondered what else they would come up with if the solution were in fact so easily and normal.

"Well, she is neither gone nor Dark Phoenix again," Jubilees voice suddenly echoed through the room and made everyone look up.

"What do you mean?" Scott immediately asked, sounding harsher than he intended. "Where's she?"

"You wanna know, don't ya?" the girl teased him and sat down again.

"Jubes!" Scott said warningly. "This is no time for your jokes. So where's Jean?"

"Okay, okay!" She gave back soothingly, before she grinned at him widely knowing that she'd hit him hard with her news. "She lies in a warm bed and snuggles with Wolvie. But I'm not gonna tell ya what they are wearing!" Scott looked at her, his face completely blank, while Moira rested her hand on her chest and let out a relieving deep breath. "Thank God, she's okay…"

"That's what I wanted to tell ya the whole time through," Ororo suddenly said stretching her sentence like a singer.

"And why didn't you just do it?" Hank asked her with a slight trace of anger in his voice.

She shrugged. "You didn't give me the chance!"

Moira took a mug into her hand and filled it with hot coffee. Despite her usual favored way of drinking it, she needed it black now. "Well, we should be glad that she's well and let her sleep. I am sure she still needs it." With the coffee in her hand she walked towards the door. "I'm going down and tell Charles that everything's fine."

"Yeah, since they were occupied the whole night through, as I assume," Jubilee mumbled and swallowed a spoon of her muesli.

"Jubes!" Scott said again; finally awaken out of his immovability. Bobby only shook his head smirking and took a tray into his hands. "I'm upstairs if someone needs me. Rogue needs breakfast." He put some food on it and walked towards the door.

"Wait! We're coming with ya!" Peter called taking Kitty's hand and followed him out of the room.

Hank, who had already taken his seat next to Storm again, sighed and continued to eat his marmalade bread. "So much excitement so early this morning. Too much for my nerves, if you ask me." Just as he was about to bite into his bread, everyone stared at the door in shock. "Okay, what is it now?" he asked and turned around.

"Morning," Jean said shyly and looked rather half-asleep. She looked to and fro between her friends who gave her rather odd looks. Slowly, she came closer, shivering a bit since she had just left the warm and comfy bed.

"Jean!" Moira suddenly cried behind her and hugged her. "Gosh, don't scare me again like this!" She looked at the woman in front of her; examining her outer experience closely, before she cocked an eyebrow at her. "You really took over some of your boyfriends bad habits, you know that? Taking off without leaving a note… You scared me to death today."

"Sorry," her opposite excused and blushed a bit. Still she had to smirk about the part with Logan. She hadn't looked at it from this perspective.

Hank was the next one to hug her tightly. "Good to see that you're back. And quiet different as I see…" Surprised he looked down at her.

"Yeah," she smiled. "Got me confused a lot when I'd woken up." She still hadn't come over the shock and fear she'd felt by then. Smiling once more at Hank, she turned around to face Scott, who took her in a tight embrace.

"Good to have you back," he whispered barely audible and closed his eyes for a brief moment. "You really gave us four weeks in hell…"

"Sorry about that," she said calmly.

"You okay?" Scott asked and looked at her worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Good." He placed a light kiss in her left cheek before he smiled at her briefly. Letting go off her he led her to her seat, before he returned to his own. "So, where's mister morning grumpiness? Still sleeping?"

Jean, who sat opposite Ororo and Jubilee, took a piece of bread from the basket. "No, he's getting the twins."

"You've already seen them?" Ororo asked surprised.

"Yeah. You were asleep when we were upstairs," the red head explained calmly still not feeling comfortable with everyone staring at her.

"Oh it happened again," the white haired woman cried and shook her head. "Sorry, I tried to stay awake after you left."

Jean smiled at her aware of Jubilee staring at her. "Thanks for taking care of them and helping him!"

Storm blushed while her heart kicked into high gear as she remembered what she'd done the day before. "No problem!" she said avoiding her gaze all of a sudden, while she felt a sick lump in her throat.

"Oh my gosh!" the girl suddenly shrieked and made nearly everyone jump. "Is that what I think that I think it is!"

"What?" Hank asked and furrowed his eyebrows while looking at Scott who had cocked an eyebrow.

"Repeat that for normal mutants, will ya Jubes?" he said since he hadn't got the slightest clue what the girl was talking about, but was aware of her and Moira smiling. Jubilee on the contrary kept on staring a Jean in disbelief, who also looked at her with questioning eyes.

"He asked you? He really asked you!" the girl continued with widened eyes. "I don't believe it…"

"Who asked her what?" Hank wanted to know and bent forward to have a better look on Jean, trying to figure out if there was anything on her, which could help him out. On the contrary to him, Ororo had taken notice of it after Jubilee had nearly jumped off her chair in excitement. Sadly, she looked down on her hands feeling happy at the same time.

While Hank still gave everyone questioning looks, it had hit Scott, too. He had totally forgotten about it for a brief moment. Smirking he looked down; not believing that his rival had really gotten the essence of what Scott actually meant by giving him the black box. "Ah, Logan…" he shook his head and sipped on his coffee.

Jubilee had grabbed Hank's arm in the meanwhile and was getting more and more excited with every minute. "Our grumpy Logan, the almighty Wolverine is getting soft on his old days and really asked her!"

"What," the blue mutant asked despaired, sensing that he was the only one who was at loss. He looked to and fro between his friends, hoping that at least one of them would be so nice to help him out as suddenly someone else entered the kitchen.

Logan approached, holding his two kids in his arms while a small blanket rested in his shoulder. Jean smiled at him softly still not used to his paternal love. Her heart immediately kicked into high gear. On the one hand because she got nervous and on the other hand because of him. She was afraid to do anything wrong, since it was her first time with the kids. "Here you go," he said calmly and laid one of them gently into her arms. "That's the little troublemaker who likes to kick his mommy's ribs." He looked into her green eyes lovingly, before he turned towards Storm, who did her best to avoid his gaze. "Hold her for a second, will ya?"

Surprised, she looked up and took the girl out of his hands. She had been convinced that he would just ignore her. Moira noticed that Jean was insecure and put her mug down. "Come on, I'll help ya." With trained hands she showed her how to hold the baby correctly, before she gently stroked over its head. "The two of you really did a good job, you know that?" Blushing, Jean looked up and gave her a shocked look, before she turned towards Logan who prepared two bottles and only chuckled.

"So, you gonna tell me what he asked her?" Hank asked Jubilee and bent down to the girl.

"Men," she sighed and shook her head playfully. "Look at her left hand!"

Hank did as he was told and surprised he raised an eyebrow. "That's what I call news," he stated before he turned around to look at Logan, just to be sure that he got the point right. "So you finally tamed him, eh?" he said jokingly to Jean who smiled back at him. "But I doubt he kneeled down in front of you and did the whole stuff…" Curious he bent forward and continued whispering. "…or did he?"

"I doubt he even said a lots of stuff, right, Logan?" Scott asked smirking. Surprised Jean looked up. She hadn't said anything to all those presumptions, since she wanted to tell Scott personally about it. Confused she looked to and fro between the two men. They knew something she didn't. Instead of attacking Logan or leaving the room outraged, Scott was too calm in her opinion. Before she could ask, Logan handed her a bottle and put the blanket around her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said surprised that he'd noticed that she was still shivering a bit. He only winked at her before he took Lily out of Storm's arms and sat down next to her. "Hold it like this," Logan said calmly and she imitated his way of feeding his daughter.

"So, you really said yes to this grumpy, feral boy here?" Hank asked while watching the couple smiling; noticing the look Logan gave him.

"So it seems," Jean said smirking before she smiled down on the child in her arms again. Moira laid a hand on her shoulder. "Congrats to the two of you then," she said, which was returned by a short _thanks_ of them, before she left the room again.

"So, Wolvie," Jubilee suddenly said teasingly. "You wanna explain what this nice purple spot on your neck is?"

"I bit myself shaving," Logan only grunted as an answer without looking at her, before he gave Jean a look; seeing that his healing factor had already erased the mark he'd left on her at night. He knew that she'd done something with him before he'd woken up. Narrowing his eyes, he mentally warned her that he'd get his revenge on her soon.

"Uhu," you really get soft on your old days, old man!" Jubilee laughed before she, too left the kitchen. Stopping once more in the doorway, she smirked at them. "Congrats by the way! Can't wait to see ya wearing a suit!" Growling, Logan told her to finally piss off.

Hank shook his head smiling. "Well, at least we have something to celebrate, right? We still need a party for the twins, here."

"Before we should discuss what to do in an emergency," Scott said and got off his chair, laying a hand on Jean's shoulder, which Logan commented by giving him a piercing glance. "Well at least he shows that he has a heart, huh?" he smirked and stared back at his opposite. "Congrats!" Squeezing Jean's shoulder briefly and noticing the confused look she gave him he went out of the room.

Hank looked at Ororo who still stared at her mug. Realizing that she was being watched she looked up meeting Hank's eyes for a very brief moment. Sighing she got up. "Congrats from me too!" she said calmly and turned around.

"'Ro, wait!" Hank called after her and jumped off his chair, following her out of the room. Jean waited until she was sure that the two of them were alone. "What are you not telling me?"

"Hmm?" Logan only made and gave her a short glance.

"Scott," she continued. "He was too calm. So what happened between the two of you?" Jean asked him calmly watching him resting Lily against his shoulder and stroking her back. "I thought he would freak out…"

"We talked. That's all," he explained briefly and placed a kiss on his daughter's cheek. Still, he was aware of the odd look Jean gave him. "Ask him if you don't believe me…"

She sighed and put the empty bottle away. "Sorry, it's just…" She imitated what he did before with her daughter and began to caress Jack's back.

"Logan," Moira's voice suddenly sounded from the door. "Charles wants to speak with you."

"Okay," he said while he rocked Lily in his arms. "You coming?"

"You haven't eaten anything," Jean stated and looked up as he placed a kiss on her cheek.

"I'll eat later," he gave back, but he noticed her warning look.

"Hold him for a second." Jean laid Jack into his arms while he watched her with a cocked eyebrow. She took the last piece of bread out of the basket and a knife. Working on it while he kept on staring at her, she finally put the knife away. "Open up!" she demanded and he obeyed. She put him the bread with marmalade into his mouth and nodded. "Good boy!" Logan only growled playfully while she took Lily into her arms and kissed his cheek. "Now off you go! The Professor doesn't like to wait."

"Chuck can wait until the kids are back upstairs," he said and kept on eating his bread. "Besides," Logan grunted and made a face. "I hate marmalade!"

Jean laughed. "Well, there was nothing else left. And it was worth seeing your face!"

With his free hand he pulled her close and placed two love bites on her neck. Satisfied of his work, he let go of her. "Have fun running around with them!"

"Jerk!" she cursed playfully and walked towards the elevator with him.

XXX

"You've gotta be kidding!" Logan nearly yelled and turned away from the window to face the Professor.

"No, Logan, I'm afraid I am not kidding," Charles said and looked at the man in front of him sharply. "I mean what I said."

Arms crossed in front of his chest, his opposite gave a derisive laugh and shook his head. "This is crazy," he assured him and stopped in front of his desk, while he put his hands on it and bent forward.

"Logan, I know you would react like that…"

"Yeah, and I am right." He narrowed his eyes. "Chuck, this is crazy!"

The Professor rested his elbows on the armrest and folded his hands in front of his mouth. "It's not crazy. It's necessary."

"Necessary?" Logan bellowed. "Jean and I could do much more harm than Kitty or Jubilee. And you want us to stay out of it? Why?"

Clearing his throat, Charles met his gaze. "I don't want you to stay out of it…I…"

Logan crossed his arms again. "Telling me to hide in the basement and let the others do the rest is staying out of it for me!" he cut him off. "They are not strong enough. Kitty in example could never handle Sabertooth or Juggernaut. They are gonna kill her!" Taking deep breaths he broke eye contact. He was getting too furious…

"Logan, I understand your worries," Charles began again and bent forward this time. "But it's about the safety of the students. They are the most important to take care of! The school can be rebuilt, but not them." He tried to meet the eyes of the man in front of him again.

"Do you want us to do it because of our kids?" Logan asked coldly.

"No, not only because of Lily and Jack." Charles looked out of the window briefly. "This school's main priority is the safety of the students. Every X-Men, you included, knows that they come first in case of an attack. They are not trained to fight, some of them still can't control their powers…so it is you who have to protect them."

Outraged, Logan turned towards him again. "Then let Cyke do it or 'Ro!"

"I want YOU and Jean to protect it and there's no point for discussion, Logan!" The Professor said loudly meeting the angry gaze of the man again. "Jean is the most powerful mutant on this planet with devastating powers and you are the most dangerous one next to her…so you are the best defense we have!"

He snorted. "In my eyes we would rather be a better _offence_! Jean could wipe them out all at once!"

Charles sighed. "Logan, you of all of us knows the best that she is not ready to take part in a battle," he said more calmly. "She's afraid of what might happen if she has to use her full powers…" Watching his opposite lowering his head Charles knew that Logan was aware of the fact that he was right. "Do you want to throw her into the frontline against her will?"

"No," Logan said calmly. "But still," he shook his head again and leant against the table, "the kids are not ready for a battle like this. They hardly managed on Alcatraz. Bobby did fine, Kitty had her problems, Angel can't do much besides flying…and Jubilee isn't even experienced. So how do you want them to fight?" he asked his opposite more harshly than he intended to. "I know we got Cyke back…but if one of them gets cured it won't help us much, right?"

"I know," the Professor said. "I trust you to train them as well as you can. I know you already did. And you also have me. In case of an attack I can't hold back," he assured him. "I will use Cerebro, if necessary with its full power against them. We can't take the risk that only one of the students dies. It's something that I am not willing to accept! Besides I will be connected to all of you during it."

Logan nodded. "Just tell me how I as the leader should lead them if I am not with them?"

Charles smiled. "I am pretty sure that you won't obey my order anymore as soon as you get to know that your friends need help."

He smirked. "And you're damn right about it, Chuck!"

"I would be glad if you could take over your class again. As Bobby told me Scott did rather theory then practical instructions. And he made it perfectly clear that the class wants you back." He had to smile as he recalled the conversation with the young man again. "I'll come down later and watch it, if you don't mind."

Logan shrugged and headed towards the door. "Fine with me."

"Oh, and Logan," he heard the Professor call after him as he had just opened the door. "Congratulations!" Logan looked down on his left hand and smirked. "Thanks!" Was all he said before he closed the door and went towards the elevators again.

Upstairs he cautiously opened the door to his room. His eyes immediately softened as he saw Jean lying on their bed with their babies next to her. "Hey," he said calmly and lay down next to them. He stretched out a finger and watched his son grabbing it with his small hand. She smiled at him while she stroked her daughter's cheeks. "What happened?" she asked calmly and gave him a worried look. "I felt that you got pretty angry."

Logan still wondered about the effects of their psychic link. She really knew how he felt even if he wasn't close and vice versa. Taking a deep breath while playing with his son he kept his eyes low. "He wants us to stay out of it."

"What?" Jean asked confused and sat up a bit. "Why?"

"Dunno. He says he wants us to protect the students in the hiding place, while the others battle them if they attack."

She shook her head. "But you could be…"

"_We_ could be, Jean," he corrected her and met her gaze, knowing what she wanted to say. "You're still afraid, aren't ya?"

Ashamed she looked down. "I'm…I'm not sure if I can handle my full power if necessary…" Jean admitted truthfully. Suddenly, she looked up as he took her free hand in his. "Jean, you already did and nothing happened. You brought yourself, Cyke, Chuck and me back from the dead…" He shook his head in disbelief of her insecurity. "You're powerful and stable enough to wipe them out all at once if you wanted."

"That's the point," she said while lowering her eyes. "It's not what I want. It's what she would do. Not what I'd do."

"I know." Logan stroked her hand gently. "Look, I just want to be sure that you defend yourself if necessary…"

"Don't worry about that." She smirked slightly. "I still want to see you in a suit remember?"

He cocked an eyebrow playfully. "Well, I could still go naked. It's you who can never wait until I get my shirt off, remember?"

She laughed derisively. "Look who's talking!" Carefully taking Lily into her arms she got off the bed. "I wanted to bath her. I already bathed him while she was sleeping. Could you check Jack's diaper? I think he needs to be cleaned up." Before Logan could say anything she has already disappeared into the bathroom. Looking at the boy with a raised eyebrow, he sighed. "Great…" He got off the bed with his son in his arms and made his way to the other room; thinking about if he should tell her that it has been Ororo who had already changed diapers. He never did it before. "Okay, pal. Just be quiet and don't get me into trouble," Logan said and began to undress Jack who kicked his legs. "Jesus!" he cursed as his sensible nose caught the smell. Holding his breath and making a disgusted face, Logan threw the diaper into the trashcan. "You sure you don't need a second bath, mate?" he asked while his eyes kept on searching. He didn't have a clue what to do next. Finally he took some of the wet cloths out of the small package on the shelves and began to clean the mess his son made up. Suddenly his shirt felt rather wet. "You've got to be kiddin' me!" Logan cried as he looked down on him. Giving Jack a rather pissed look he took some more cloths and worked on his shirt.

"What's wrong?" he heard Jean asking and snorted. "You're son peed on my shirt!" he gave back. Hearing a noise out of the bathroom he narrowed his eyes and concentrated. "Did you just laugh?" he asked aloud and cocked an eyebrow. Snorting he took care of his son again. Logan would have bet that he was smiling. "You think that's funny, eh?" he asked him. "Don't forget I am the one who feeds you!" Cleaning him up once more he took a diaper in his hand. Looking at it from all sides, Logan sighed. He had no idea how those darn things worked… Placing it under Jack he tried to stick down the endings. Turning the diaper around and trying it again it still didn't work. "Those things are crap!" he cursed, while trying it for the third time. "Yeah!" he smirked satisfied as he finally made it. Pulling Jack up and wanting to look at his work, Logan slowly had to watch as the diaper fell down. He narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath, while Jack began to make a face. Soon his cry echoed in Logan's sensitive ears. "Okay, that's it!" He laid him down again and took the diaper in his hand once more. "Jean!" Logan said aloud and hoped she would rescue him out oft his misery, before his ears would explode. "You know," he heard her voice suddenly behind him and turned around. "Somehow I knew you never did it before!" She only smirked and handed him his daughter, before she explained in his best lecturer tone how to put on the diaper; ignoring his snorts and cocked eyebrow.

_That was chapter 37. I actually wanted to do it differently. The part, which I wanted to include, will be the beginning of the next chapter and the ending I planned for this one will be the end of the next one. Okay, it's confusing, I know. I hope this diaper scene was okay for you. ; ) See ya in the next chapter I hope!_


	39. Chapter 38

**Changes Chapter 38**

Attentive, she watched her opposite. Noticing every move, every ploy and other distraction he tried. His left arm shoot forward, trying to grab her, but she knew he only tried to divert her. He would use the right arm in the end. Quickly, she blocked his attack, made a half turn to the right and wanted to counter it, as he suddenly turned his right leg outwards. Shrieking, she fell backwards, stopping all of a sudden in mid air. She realized that he'd grabbed her waist.

"Too slow!" Logan said and helped her to her feet again. "Your body doesn't only consist of hands, ya know?"

"Yeah," Kitty said heavily breathing and nodded before she got into position again. The other X-Men and some skilled students where watching the scenery. They sat around the mat; some cross-legged others had pulled their legs close with their hands. The younger X-Men were glad that Logan finally gave his classes again. After nearly two weeks of listening to Scott and his instructions, they had absolutely enough of theory. Finally, they could do some practical stuff again.

"Uh…," Jubilee made as Kitty fell again to the ground. She saw her shaking her head in frustration. Logan helped her up to her feet again. "And you also have a hip!" he advised her. "Take a break." Kitty nodded slowly and sat down next to her friends. "Damn!" she cursed and pulled her legs close.

"Ah, come on! You weren't that bad." Jubilee said and laid a hand on her shoulder.

The other girl snorted. "Yeah, that's why I kissed the mat three times… I'll never learn it!"

"You will, Kitty," Bobby assured her. "Maybe you were just nervous because we're watching. At least that's what happens to me all the time."

"Or because of him!" Jubilee winked and looked towards her teacher, noticing that he was watching her. Swallowing, she knew that it was her turn now. "Damn…"

"Don't be too nervous because of him!" Bobby teased her and smirked, while she stuck out her tongue and got up. As she'd learned it, she bowed before she stepped on the mat.

"Finished talking?" Logan asked her seriously annoyed and cocked an eyebrow at the talkative girl. Jubilee swallowed again while her heart began to race. Not only was she nervous because of him, she also knew that he'd find out pretty soon that she hadn't practiced. "Get into position," Logan said and nodded to the spot opposite him. "Task is the same. Evade and attack."

The girl nodded and prepared herself. After bowing to the other, she took a deep breath and took her defense position. He looked at her piercingly, trying to make her insecure. Slowly, Logan began to make sidesteps while he kept his eyes on her. Jubilee moved with him. Keeping the distance between them, she waited for his first attack. Before she even realized it, she laid in her back. "W…what?" she asked confused and looked up.

"Concentrate!" Logan grunted. "Get up!" Slowly, she got to her feet again, still wondering how it had happened. He waited until she got into position again. Then he moved his right hand in distraction and watched how she reacted to it. Quickly, he turned his hip, moved his right arm against her chest and used his right leg to throw her off balance. Angry, Logan crossed his arms in front of his chest while he stared down on her. Jubilee knew that he figured it out. She couldn't even believe it herself that she did so miserable. "Get up!" he hissed and she obeyed. Lowering her head she didn't dare to look into his eyes. "I taught you this movement in the first lesson!" he said harshly and kept his eyes on her. "And I told you to practice it, damn it!"

"I'm sorry," she said barely audible while her heart was racing.

"Don't be sorry, do as you're told! Sit down!" he said angrily and she bowed before she walked back. "Who else didn't practice?" Logan asked and put his hands to his hips while he looked at them angrily. Two of the skilled students slowly raised their hands. "Why?"

"W…we thought…," the girl began stuttering but was cut off by her teacher.

"I didn't tell you to think! I said I want you to practice!" Logan grunted while narrowing his eyes. "Why am I doing this shit, what do you think!" He looked to and fro between them. "So that you're occupied for two hours? If you think that, then we can leave it and I order body bags. I've better things to do!" Angrily he gave Jubilee a look who was about to comment it. "And especially _you_ should feel addressed!" he growled. "You're not even able to keep the easiest things in mind!"

"Stop being so harsh, Logan," Scott intervened and stood up.

"What!" Logan shot back and turned towards him. "Ya think I'm too harsh?"

"Yeah, I do!" the other man gave back.

"I see," his opposite nodded playfully while his hands were still on his hips. "So what do you think Sabertooth will do if he gets his hands on her?" he asked him sarcastically. "Do ya think he'll be nice and gentle when he slices her into pieces? Huh?" His eyes sparkled with anger. "Do ya think he'll warn her before he attacks and give her time to run?" Scott looked down, not able to hold his gaze. "Do ya want me to demonstrate what I'd do with her if I were him?" Anxiously, Jubilee looked up and backed off a bit. Even if Logan didn't move her heart was beating triple rhythms.

"Of course he wouldn't do it," Scott said and shook his head. "But you're far more skilled and experienced. They'll never have a chance against you."

Logan snorted and smirked at him "What do you think is Magneto gonna do?" he asked him ironically. "Split his group and sent the females to catch the girls and the males to fight the boys?" He shook his head. "Are you so naïve, Cyke? He wants to kill us! All of us if possible!"

"They still have their powers," Scott gave back, folding his arms in front of his chest while getting angrier. The others knew they were up for another testosterone fight…

"Oh, their powers are definitely gonna help them if they got cured," Logan nodded ironically. "You can't rely on your powers only! Don't ya get that, boy?" He noticed that Jean and the others were looking to and fro between them.

Scott shook his head. "You're not the only one who can fight, Logan." He stepped on the mat, looking at his opposite challenging.

"Oh really? Haven't noticed so far…" Logan gave back jokingly; knowing what he was up to. "So show me!"

"You think that's a good idea?" Storm asked Jean calmly while watching Scott taking position.

"Logan is right. We don't know if Magneto's in possession of the cure. They have to be able to defend themselves without their powers, too." She gave her a short look. "I only hope he doesn't hurt him…" Worriedly, she watched the scenery again.

"Scott, Logan or vice versa?" the other woman asked her.

"Scott doesn't have the slightest chance against Logan in a real fight. He just doesn't realize it."

"Hold on a second!" Logan suddenly said and made Scott frown.

"What now? Being scared?"

"Nope. Just want to give ya a chance." He walked over to Jean, sending her a mental note. Jean got up and gave him a blindfold, while she eyed him worriedly. "You're not gonna hurt him, are you?" she asked calmly. He took the cloth out of her hand and smirked. "Only as much until he understands." Winking at her he walked back.

"What's that gonna be?" the other man asked in confusion and watched Logan blindfolding himself. Also the others were looking at each other frowning.

"I'll give ya a fair chance since ya haven't taken part in this class so far."

Scott snorted. "Don't underestimate me, Logan!" he warned him.

His opposite took position and smirked slightly. "I'm only caring!" Not being able to see anything he had to rely in his ears only.

"Fine… But I won't hold back!" Scott warned him once more and prepared himself, while his opposite didn't move an inch.

"Good," Logan only said and began to concentrate every sense on the man in front of him. Slowly, Scott moved in a circle around his opposite, completely calm. He smirked since Logan still didn't move. He still had his head lowered and breathed calmly, while his muscles were tensed. Scott was convinced that even with his heightened senses he wouldn't have a chance fighting him blind. Scott knew how to fight. He had learned self-defense very early in his life. And he knew Logan… If the animal within got scared, he would use his claws. Scott would show him that his way of teaching was wrong.

"What do you think?" Bobby asked calmly and looked at Kitty and Jubilee. "Who will win?"

"Do you really have to ask?" Kitty replied and gave him the same cocked eyebrow as an answer as Jubilee did. Tension filled the room. Everyone, even the Professor, was staring at the two men in the middle and waited for them to start. Worriedly, Jean and Storm pulled their legs closer.

After taking two circled clockwise and one anticlockwise, Scott stopped right behind his adversary. All of a sudden, he made one side step and jumped at Logan, who still had his back turned to him, with clenched fists. Gasping, the others widened their eyes, convinced that he would hurt their teacher. Scott's fist had nearly reached him as Logan ducked and turned around at the same time. Grabbing his arm, he threw his adversary to the ground. Gritting his teeth, the man jumped up; fixing his eyes on his opposite. Both were moving clockwise in a circle around the other. Again, Scott jumped at his adversary but Logan evaded his attack with an easy movement. The visored-man stopped while turning around at the same time. His fists shot forward. Logan blocked it with his right hand. He heard a sound and blocked the second hand, too, before he pushed Scott away. This one breathed heavily in frustration. Quickly, he sped up his attacks on Logan. Tried to punch him, kick him, grab him, but he didn't even touch his opposite once. Every time Logan blocked him and his counters always reached their target. The anger grew within Scott unstoppably. He wouldn't lose against a blind Wolverine in front of all X-Men and the Professor. He definitely wouldn't endure the shame. Especially since he knew that the kids would mock him with it. Lost in thoughts, he realized too late that Logan had started an attack. Unable to evade so quickly, his opposite got hold of his right arm and started to twist it. Scott used his free hand to punch him, but Logan tilted his head just in time. Using all his strength, Scott moved into the opposite direction, trying to free his arm again. Just as he thought he'd made it, Logan suddenly moved backwards, twisted his arm again and pulled it strongly into his own direction. Making a nearly 360° turn in mid air, Scott hit the mat with his back hard, while the air left his lungs immediately.

Logan took off the blindfold and looked down on him. "You're too noisy and too slow."

Panting, Scott gritted his teeth. Angrily he got up holding his back. "Easy if you've got heightened senses!" he grunted.

"I didn't win because of it," Logan said and shook his head. "You are so easy to calculate. Even without hearing you, you would have ended on the ground."

Scott snorted and walked away. Slowly, he sat down next to Hank again; still holding his aching back. "You know, he's right," the blue mutant said. "You blindly attacked him because you got too furious. And in contrast to him, you were really too slow. He didn't even use his whole strength and agility, my friend."

"Yeah, cheer me up!" the other man snorted.

Logan put the blindfold away. "Ya see that it has nothing to do with seeing or hearing your enemy. If ya stay calm and concentrate on him completely, ya can make it." He gave Jubilee a short look, which told volumes. "But of course not without practicing. You won't survive without knowledge! You can't win a fight by using your hands or legs only. You've to use your whole body and brain, otherwise ya can already order a coffin." Being completely serious, Logan looked to and fro. "Class dismissed."

"Hey!" he heard a well-known voice suddenly say and everyone turned their heads to the speaker. Jean got up and looked at him. "What about me?" she asked him. "Everyone got his chance but me!"

Logan sighed. He knew this would come even if they already had a long conversation about it early this morning. "Jean, you're in a coma for four weeks…"

"And?" she gave back while coming closer. "This won't stop them from attacking me."

He put his hands to his hip. "We're already talked about it…"

"You talked about it and I told you that I'm fine and I want to train again!" She stopped right in front of him.

"This is gonna be interesting!" Jubilee said to the other X-Men and grinned. "Anyone up for bets?"

"He won't do it!" Scott said unimpressed.

Hank shook his head. "He trained her. Believe me, by now you won't have her as your adversary!" He smiled and wanted to tease his friend. "He even taught her to fight blindfolded…"

"Yeah, that's why it's gonna be a fun to watch," Jubilee said again and smirked. "Who's for Jean?"

"Ts, and even if," Scott continued still not convinced. "He'd let her win! That's too obvious. As if he only tries to hurt her…"

"Stop being such a sourpuss!" Bobby said. "Believe me, the two of them are quiet a show!"

Ororo bent forward, resting her head in her legs while pulling them closer. "He taught her everything he knows since her return. And Logan never holds back while fighting with her. That's why he refuses it now…"

"It's not fair!" Jean said angrily and met his intransigent eyes. "I'm fine, Logan. And I want to train again, damn it!"

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Then start with some easy exercises and not with the main event!"

"You afraid to lose?" she teased him self-assured, knowing that this would hit his ego.

"Hell I am!" he gave back with a slight trace of anger in his voice.

She smirked satisfied. She knew this would work. Logan's ego as a man was just too big. "Fine, then let's start!" Jean said and bowed. "And don't even dare to hold back!" He watched her getting ready and shook his head frustrated. He should have known that this was a trick. Even if he knew that his healing factor was still working within her, he had his doubts… Still, he knew that she wouldn't give up and attack him with everything she got if he refused to react. Taking a deep breath again, he prepared himself.

First, they only looked at each other, waiting and watching. Then they began to move in a circle, keeping the distance between them; waiting for the other to start. They didn't take notice of the X-Men and students who were watching them closely in excitement. Jean was taught to block out everything that hadn't to do with a fight and she concentrated on her adversary only. All of a sudden, she made a move. Punching at him while she kept on turning her body and legs quickly. She had trained hard to work on her agility with him. He'd always been faster than her. Reacting instinctively, Logan used his arms to block her punches, while his legs kept on evading her kicks. He smirked. He knew what she was up to… While trying to hit him with her hands, she used her legs to distract him and vice versa. Actually, he thought, she should know that _his_ strategies wouldn't work on him… Suddenly, she grabbed his collar and turned her back towards him; feeling the weight of his chest on her right shoulder. He felt how he was lifted off the ground; she tried to throw him… Quickly, he arched his back and head to lift his weight and made it impossible for her to proceed. Jean felt the weight lifting off her shoulder to her hip. He became too heavy and she knew he just evaded her attack. While Jean turned around, Logan attacked her quickly. She saw his legs shooting at hers and jumped over them. With another jumped she turned around and tried to kick him within the air. Ducking, he evaded again and blocked another one with his arms. Taking deep breaths, Jeans prepared herself. As fast a she could she used her hands and legs for all kinds of attacks, which came to her mind. She sped up her agility to its maximum and recalled everything he'd taught her. Any trick, and ploy and attack. Turning and moving like a dancer, she kept on with it while he also moved with full speed and blocked, ducked or countered. They knew they were complete equals by now…both equally skilled, with a strong will to win and only different by height and weight. He had shown her how to deal with such differences and she used this knowledge against him now.

Jean cursed as he managed to jump aside and rolled off during it, before he suddenly turned and grabbed her. Logan easily pulled her off her feet and threw her to the ground. Quickly, she turned, grabbed his collar while she let herself fall backwards and took him with her. One foot against his abdomen, she used his speed to throw him over her. Again, Logan rolled off in mid air and stood on his feet only seconds later.

"Gosh," Kitty said amazed while her chin dropped. "How did she do that! He's so heavy… I can't even manage to make him stumble for a second… And see? She can even make him sweat and pant!" Bobby smirked before he watched the two grown ups again who kept on attacking each other merciless. To him it really appeared more like dancing. Their fighting was so smooth; he had never seen anything like it. Both used their bodies so perfectly during a fight… He sighed. He really still had a lot to learn. Suddenly, Jean shrieked and landed on the ground.

"He's holding back, huh?" Hank asked Scott with a cocked eyebrow, but his opposite only shrugged.

"He did!" he only replied and watched Jean using her leg quickly, trying to keep Logan off balance but he jumped over it.

Frustrated, Jean sighed while getting up. She briefly looked at his groin and smirked. Her hand shot forward and Logan grabbed it quickly while turning her around in one move. With her left arm pinned to her back, he held her captured against his body. "Ah, ah…" Logan only said, since he knew what she wanted to do. "You're not gonna touch them, darl'," he added calmly before he smirked. "Looks like I've won, eh?" He didn't see that Jean was also smirking towards the disappointed looking women, who had bet that she'd win. Winking at them, she leant against him while he still held her in a tight grip. With a devious smirk, she rubbed her button against his loins before she ran her free hand over his groin. Biting his lips, while gasping in surprise, Logan loosened his grip for a brief moment. Quickly, Jean turned around, grabbed his right arm and twisted it as her adversary had done to Scott before. Moving as quickly as she could, Logan was unable to react so fast and soon it was him who made a 360° turn in mid air and landed on his back. Before he could get up, Jean pinned him down to the ground. As he wanted to counter she only shook her head. "Ah, ah," she made this time and still smirked while nodding down. Raising his head a bit, Logan noticed that her knee rested right over his groin. Moving wasn't such a good idea…he thought.

"You cheated!" he protested growling and narrowed his eyes.

Jean smirked. "_You have to use your whole body,_" she cited him and heard the girls laugh cheerfully.

"Vixen!" Logan cursed and took the hand she offered him to get up. He looked at her malicious face and narrowed his eyes again, while holding his back. He'd never lost against her before. And she'd only won by using a very dirty trick. "I didn't teach you this," he grunted and shook his head.

"Ah, come on!" she laughed and linked arms with him. "You're only pissed because you lost against me."

"Nah, I'm pissed because you used a very dirty trick!" he corrected her growling.

Jean shrugged. "Not my problem when you're so sensitive down there…"

Logan cocked an eyebrow at her and snorted. "We'll see whose sensitive later," he assured her and gave her a warning look before he turned towards the class. "Class dismissed!" Jean let go of him still smirking and walked over to the girls who were still excited. Logan watched them closely.

"You trained her well," Hank suddenly said next to him.

Turning around Logan only snorted. "Too well!"

Smiling the blue mutant laid a hand on his shoulder. "She only used your tricks of distraction successfully," he laughed. "And besides, a student is only as good as its teacher!" Hank winked before he left Logan alone again.

Slowly, he made his way to the changing stall for teachers and cracked his neck. All he needed was a good shower, which might help him to relax again. He watched how Hank, Scott, Peter and Bobby entered the men's showers while talking, before he turned his attention to the girls. Kitty and Jubilee were chatting with Storm and Jean and were just about to enter the girl's shower. Quickly, he grabbed the red head's wrist. "Nope!" Logan grunted and made her look at him in surprise. "You still have a conversation with your teacher!" Without looking at the other girls who were all smirking, except Ororo, he pulled her with him into his changing stall. Closing the door behind them, he looked at her piercingly.

Jean only crossed her arms in front of her chest playfully. "You know that students are not allowed in here?" Logan shrugged and folded his hands behind his back, before he came slowly closer. He saw this special gleam in his eyes and knew what he was up to. Pinning her to the wall, he looked up and down her body, which made her heart kick into high gear while she blushed. He slowly began to undress her; keeping his eyes on hers. "So, I assume I get punished for using dirty tricks on my teacher?" she asked him playfully while leaning back against the cold wall. Logan only snorted and sealed her lips with his, while the last pieces of her clothes fell to the ground. Quickly, he got rid off his own, before he lifted her up so that she sat on his hips. Squealing she wrapped her arms around his neck when he carried her away towards the shower.

XXX

Scott and the other X-Men where standing in the gym and looked at the Professor who'd recalled them. He wanted to do another Dangerroom session with them and looked to and fro as if looking for someone. "Where are Logan and Jean?" he asked in confusion.

Jubilee and Bobby gave each other amused looks. "I think Logan's still in the shower," Hank finally said and turned around. "I'll get him."

"Ah, Hank," Bobby said and the blue mutant stopped. "You should wait at the door, you know…"

"I see…," his opposite replied smirking. Opening the door to the teacher's changing room, he carefully looked inside. "Hey you love-crazed mutant! Stop doing whatever you're doing and come out. The Professor wants to see you!" Listening carefully he heard a threatening growl. "Come on, Logan! I know you can't keen away from each other, but your presence is needed!"

Angry hazel eyes met his blue ones as Logan stepped out of the shower. "Is it too much to ask for to have five damn minutes alone?" he growled and wrapped a towel around his hip. Taking another one into his hands, he handed Jean one, who was waiting in the shower room.

"Sorry, pal! It wasn't my idea. Charles wants an additional Dangerroom exercise." Logan only snorted and rolled his eyes as an answer and began to towel his dark hair dry.

"He's pissed!" Hank warned the others while he joined them again. It didn't take long until Logan and Jean came out of the room and stopped right next to him.

"Logan, can I talk with you for a moment?" Charles asked calmly. Snorting the mutant followed him. Jean watched them talking. Not being able to hear anything they said, she had to rely on Logan's body language. He stood; arms crossed in front of the Professor and listened to him, as he suddenly met her eyes. Immediately, she felt a thick lump in her throat. Whatever Charles was up to, it included her. Wrapping her arms around herself, as she always did when she felt uncomfortable or scared, she watched Logan leaving the gym while the Professor returned to them smiling.

"What kind of Danger room session is it gonna be?" Scott asked him.

Stopping next to him, Charles looked up. "I want to do another team battle session. Since the last one you all had time to think about the mistakes you made."

"You mean me!" Scott corrected him smirking.

Xavier smiled. "Jean," he said seriously and she raised her head only as much until their eyes met. "It's your decision but I'd like to see you joining the team. Try it at least, will you?" Thinking about it for a brief moment, she nodded slowly.

"Are we fighting against the Brotherhood again?" Hank asked as they followed him out of the gym.

"No, not this time. You'll fight against a single person only." He stopped in front of the X-Men changing room and watched Logan coming out of it. Surprised the others watched as he nodded towards Charles while he pulled his leather gloves on, before he disappeared into the Danger room. Scott wrinkled his brows. "Hold on a second," he demanded and put his hands to his hips. "You don't want us to fight Logan, do you?" He looked down on the man in the wheelchair in disbelief. Scott gave a derisive laugh after he'd figured out his opposite's mimic and shook his head. "First of all, we're nine against him alone and if Wolverine shows up…"

"That's why I'm here. And Jean is inside with you." Charles folded his hands. "Logan is in much more control of the Wolverine then you think, Scott."

Hank nodded. "That's true. Our feral boy has become pretty soft lately." He winked at Jean who smiled in return despite her nervousness. "But still," he went on. "Scott's right. It's nine against one."

"Don't underestimate him!" the Professor warned and shook his head. "Weapon X _designed_ him to be the perfect assassin, to battle and kill whole groups… And he still is if necessary."

Scott snorted folded his arms in front of his chest. "He's neither that powerful nor as dangerous as Jean…"

Charles gave him a warning look again. "He's second to Jean the most dangerous mutant on this planet, Scott! That's why I'm concerned that Erik will use the strongest mutants against him and her. And on the other hand it is a good training for you as a team. Especially with the new additions."

"So how do you want us to proceed?" Ororo asked knowing that he was right. She'd seen what Logan was capable of if necessary, so had Beast.

"After you entered the Danger room, the program will start as usual. Your aim is to bring Logan down. By pinning him to the ground in example and not by seriously hurting him of course! His aim is to do the same with you. As soon as he manages to catch one of you, the program automatically ends for this person."

Jubilee frowned. "Why?"

"Because if he gets his hands in you in a real fight," Bobby explained slowly.

"You'd be dead!" Scott finished the sentence, finally seeing the point of this exercise.

After changing into their uniforms, the X-Men entered the Danger room; watching how it immediately changed. Soon they stood in the institute's garden. "Great!" Cyclops cursed since it was dark on the outside. He observed the surrounding exactly, making sure that their adversary wasn't close by. "Jean, can you sense him?" She concentrated on her psychic link for a brief moment but shook her head in the end. "No, he can block my telepathy if he wants to."

"What scares me is that I bet he's watching us," Jubilee said. Nervously she kept on looking around, thinking that she felt his eyes on her.

"So, how do we proceed?" Beast asked and watched how Scott started to think. He shrugged, putting his arms to his hips at the same time. He had no idea how to proceed. Logan was definitely superior in this surrounding, especially in the dark. "If he's here in the garden he definitely wants to lure us into the wood… He knows every spot there, so we have to avoid it by all means." His eyes scanned the area again before he turned towards the groups. "We should stay together."

Jean shook her head. "He won't attack us as long as we're together. It will take forever if we don't split at least into two groups."

"But we're a far easier target if we separate," Storm added.

"If we split we're still," Cyclops counted them. "…six and seven per groups."

"He'll concentrate on the weakest ones first," Jean added calmly. In thoughts she kept on looking around. She couldn't even tell them how uncomfortable she felt. If he were here with her it would be far easier for her to stay calm. The others couldn't stop her if necessary.

"Jean, are you alright?" he asked her worriedly.

"Yeah." She nodded. "So how do you want us to split?"

Cyclops thought about it for a brief moment. "The weakest ones are the newbies. We have to reconcile this." He looked at them in deep thought. "Okay, we split like this." He took Jean by the hand, who looked at him in confusion, and stepped aside from the others. "Jean's team consists of Storm, Beast, Icemen, Jubilee, Wolfsbane and Karma." The addressed mutants walked over to the red head. "Mine are the rest. Three newbies per groups and the powers should be balanced in that way, too. If anything happens," he looked at them closely. "Call for help! Don't do anything stupid! He's dangerous and he knows that." The others nodded. "And keep away from the wood! My group deals with the garden down there." With that he turned around and left with his group; unaware that two eyes followed them and had watched the whole scenery.

Storm looked at Jean. From the look on her face she could tell that it was too much for her to be a leader. "Do you want me to lead them?" she asked her and the red head nodded. "Okay, everyone! Keep your eyes open and think about what Cyclops had said! If you hear or see anything, let the others know."

Cyclops and his groups reached the other side of the garden. "Keep your eyes open, guys!" he warned them. Suddenly he frowned. "Where's Shadowcat?" he asked and looked to and fro, but the girl was gone. He activated his headset. "Jean? Is Kitty still with you?" He listened to her, before he clenched his fist. "Damn it! That's impossible!" He ran a hand over his face. "Watch out, he's close by!" he warned the others. "Angel, fly up and try to find him!"

Angel nodded and soon he was in the air, looking over the scenery. He kept his eyes to the ground, scanned the area and tried to find the slightest sign of Wolverine. But it was too dark for him to really see anything. The moon only lightened up the garden a bit, but it wasn't enough for him. He saw a tree approaching right in front of him. He flew only inches above it…

"Stay together," Cyclops said aloud with his hand on his visor. He had heard a sound as if someone had fallen down a tree. "Magma, try to light up the area a bit."

"Okay!" the girl said and clenched her fists, which started to glow. Only seconds later her body was completely covered in a glaring red light and she radiated an unbelievable heat. Cyclops and the others watched how their sight became a bit better. It was enough to see at least few meters ahead.

"Angel, do you see him somewhere?" he asked his teammate through the headset and waited for an answer. "Angel, do you copy?" Cursing he backed off a bit. "Concentrating on the weak ones first, huh?" he snorted.

Colossus looked at him. "He does," he replied. "Angel and Kitty were the weak ones of our group…"

Cyclops had to admit that he was right even if he didn't like the idea. "The weak ones of Jean's group…" he said while checking the area again. "What do you think?"

The huge man shrugged. "Jubilee and Wolfsbane maybe…" He turned his head quickly to the right and narrowed his eyes. He was sure he'd seen something. Concentrating hard, he made two steps forward.

"What?" Cyclops asked him. "Did you see him?"

"I'm not sure," Colossus replied. "It was probably nothing." Nevertheless, he turned into his organic form. "I think he's there." He pointed towards the bushes.

"Hey, wait!" the leader said and hold him back. "He wants us to split. If you go, we're an even easier target!"

"Well, Wolverine doesn't obviously care, right?" his opposite replied. "He caught Kitty and she was right next to us and Angel." Colossus turned his attention towards the bushes again. "If he catches me, you can still join Jean's group again."

Cyclops crossed his arms in front of his chest. He knew that it was risky. Wolverine only waited for this chance. Nonetheless, they were defensive the whole time through and it had already cost them two members. He looked up at the giant boy who waited for his decision. "Hold on a second!" Pushing the speaker button on his headset, he looked at him. "Jean, are Jubilee and Wolfsbane still with you?" Cyclops listened before he nodded towards his opposite. "Okay, take Sunfire with you!"

Sunfire followed his partner. He was nervous and his heart nearly broke his chest. He wasn't only scared because this was his first Danger room session in which he took part in; he also felt like he was being watched. He knew Wolverine was watching them; knew that he was close by… Nervously, he turned quickly around, believing that his adversary was standing right behind him. Relieved he turned around again and bumped into Colossus who'd stopped. "Sorry…"

"You can shoot plasma, right?" he heard the Russian man asking and nodded. "Yeah."

Colossus pointed towards the bushes. "Fire at them. If he hides there he has to come out." Sunfire concentrated. Feeling even more miserable than before, he stretched out his hands. Bright glowing plasma shot through the air, flying into the direction of the green plants. Soon they were set on fire. It didn't take long until every bush caught fire and illuminated the area more than Magma was able to do before. Colossus narrowed his eyes. He waited for Wolverine to come out. "He was there," he said more to himself than to the young boy on his right.

"Precisely," someone suddenly growled right next to them. "I was!" Gasping for air, both X-Men turned around in an instant. Instinctively, Sunfire began to throw plasma into every direction. His heart kicked into high gear. He'd been right before…Wolverine had been behind him.

"Stop it!" Colossus demanded. "You're hitting me too!" Panting, the boy stopped shaking all over. "Stay calm! I'm with you!" His surrounding was completely still. The only sounds were the crackling of the fire and their irregular breaths. Suddenly, they heard a threatening growl. "Can you see him?"

"No," Sunfire panted and backed off in fear until he bumped against something. First thinking that it was a tree, he swallowed hard all of a sudden. "Co…Colossus…" he stuttered. Seeing his comrade turning around, he heard a _snikt_ at the same time. Feeling a hand grabbing him from behind, he soon saw the Danger room turning back to normal.

Colossus had grabbed his headset in the meanwhile. "I got him! He's over here!" he said, before Wolverine threw himself at him uttering a loud primal scream. Glancing to the side, the huge mutant saw Cyclops and Magma approaching at full speed. He only had to occupy his adversary long enough. Seeing the sharp claws pointing at him, he evaded the attack with a side step. Still one pair of the razor sharp weapons cut his organic metal, sending sparks into the air. He knew he'd be dead. His adversary would have hit his heart if he hadn't been in his mutant form. Growling, Wolverine turned around, slashing at him. Quickly, Colossus grabbed his arms and twisted it as he'd learned it from him. Desperately, he tried to hold onto the feral mutant who kept on attacking him. As one of Cyclops beams hit the ground next to him, he felt Magma's heat coming closer, Punching Wolverine once he grabbed his collar and tried to throw him into the attack of the girl. Roaring, his adversary kicked him hard in mid air and hit his cheek with a painful elbow punch right afterwards. Stumbling, Colossus tried to prevent himself from falling. Realizing too late that Wolverine had already started his next attack, he only felt a hard bump on his back, before he flew directly into Magma's and Cyclops's next attack.

"Damn!" the leader cursed, while Magma stopped in shock. "No," she gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. She heard Cyclops calling for help, while he attacked Wolverine with his beams. She on the contrary couldn't move. And her adversary noticed it with a short glance at her. Growling, he evaded the beams with quick moves; fought his way closer to her before she came over the shock.

"Magma, move!" Cyclops yelled and cursed as his beam hit empty air again. In despair he jumped at his enemy; trying to stop him from attacking the girl, but Wolverine already had brought Magma down who started an attack too late. "Guys, I need help!" Cyclops yelled into the speaker again and heard a thunderstorm coming up. Once more he kept on firing beams at him. Watching satisfied as two of them ripped the leather off his opposite's uniform. Gritting his teeth, Wolverine jumped at him with raised arms. Roaring, he hit the ground as Cyclops evaded the attack and barely jumped aside as a beam destroyed the spot where he'd been. Cyclops quickly looked to the side and saw the second team coming closer. Hearing another growl, he ducked as Wolverine tried to punch him. His counter stroked his enemy's cheek barely, before all air left his lungs all at once. Holding his belly, Cyclops dropped to the knees and gasped for air. Far away, he heard one of Storm's lightning bolts approaching, but he also saw three sharp claws striking out and coming closer to his head.

Storm's eyes glowed white while she sent a bolt right into the direction of Wolverine. Rising into the air, she stretched out her arms and began to turn quickly around her own axis. Like a spinning top, she gathered the air around herself, causing it to build a whirlwind before she shot down on her adversary, who'd watched her closely. With tensed muscles he saw her gaining speed. Quickly, he rolled off and jumped as she tried to hit him with another bolt right after she'd landed. Evading one of Iceman's beams, he kicked Beast hard before he jumped at Karma. She was their weakest link now, despite her ability to control minds. Uttering another primal scream, of which he knew would scare her to death, he ran at her at full speed and brought her down before Beast could reach him with his attack. Panting and sweating, Wolverine gritted his teeth while he kept on watching them. He covered his eyes as a hailstorm attacked him and rolled aside when another ice beam approached in the middle of it. Attacking Jean was too risky. He wouldn't dare to make her freak out. He knew she was scared by the way she looked. Growling, Wolverine met Beast's next attack and punched him. Letting out a sharp breath he suddenly landed on the back. "Pin him down!" Beast yelled and jumped at him again followed by Iceman, but his adversary was quicker. Moving aside, Iceman's beam hit Beast instead of Wolverine. Not passing up the opportunity, he finished him next. Angrily, Storm threw another bolt at him, followed by a snowstorm. Protecting his eyes growling, Wolverine jumped aside. Thinking, he calculated his next attacks.

Heavily breathing, Storm joined Jean who had her eyes fixed on him. "Can't you make him stop or something?" she asked her before shooting another bolt at him. "Jean, stop being afraid. We have to beat him!" Frowning, she watched Wolverine smirking at her. She knew he was up to something. Before she could react, he disappeared into the dark part of the garden. "Damn it!" Storm cursed. "Come on!" She grabbed Jean's hand and ran after him, trying to keep up with his speed. They kept on looking around and followed the noises he made. All of a sudden everything was completely calm. Confused, Storm started at the mansion's walls. "Did you see where he went?" she asked Jean who seemed to be as surprised as she was.

The re head shook her head. "No…" Scanning the area, they walked a few steps. "But he can't be inside. We would have heard a door at least…"

"But there's nowhere to hide," Storm replied calmly and turned around to check the area behind them. "Damn, why does it have to be night!"

Jean looked up into the sky. She remembered what the Professor had told her. She was able to do anything she could imagine… But could she also manipulate the computer? Lost in thoughts she didn't notice that Storm was watching her.

"Everything alright?"

Jean met her eyes. "Yeah," she said while her heart kicked into high gear. "I want to try something."

Her friend shrugged. "As long as it helps to find him…fine with me!" She watched as Jean looked up again. Gasping she saw her eyes burning like fire. Within seconds, an artificial sun lightened the room up. "Wow…" she only said completely surprised and eyed her surrounding; not noticing the weird look Jean suddenly gave her. "Didn't know you could do that!" Turning around again, her eyes widened. "Look out!" she yelled too late as Wolverine already jumped off the wall right above their heads. Making a half turn in the air, he landed right behind her and threw her to the ground. Jean backed off a little. She was the only one left now…

Retracting his claws, Wolverine sighed and cracked his head. "Nice trick!" he stated and cocked an eyebrow. "So," he continued and put his hands to his hips. "Do we leave it at it?"

"You want me to give up without trying?" she asked him surprised.

He smirked. "Darlin', ya could have done this nice little trick of yours way earlier. One raised hand of ya could have finished me before I'd gotten my hands on Kitty." He shook his head. "You're afraid. So ya don't have to fight if ya don't want to…" He crossed his arms in front of his chest and tilted his head a bit; his eyes had this special gleam in them. "Or did you want this to end like that, eh?"

Jean shook her head smiling. She couldn't believe that he really was flirting wit her in this situation. Nevertheless, she knew that he's always flirting with her. He didn't care about the right time or place. "So you think that I wouldn't attack you?"

"You wouldn't!" Wolverine shook his head again.

"You're convinced of it, huh?" Jean asked playfully.

He shrugged and wobbled his head as he'd done at the Blackbird at Alkali Lake. "As I said, you could have…" Before he realized it, she'd sent him flying backwards. Grimacing, he hit the ground hard with his pelvis. Growling, he slowly got up and a familiar _snikt_ echoed through the garden. "Fine! Your choice!" Jean watched him running at her and left the ground. Quickly, Wolverine jumped at the wall and buried his claws into it, making his way to her. As he reached her height he uttered a primal scream and jumped off, aiming his claws at her. She quickly sent a wave at him. But he was faster and evaded it. Shrieking, Jean felt him grabbing her and was thankful that he'd retracted his claws before touching her. Holding onto her, Wolverine smirked. "What now? Sending me backwards against wall? Smashing me to the ground?" His eyes sparkled. "I don't want to hurt you, Jeannie. So let's end this." Suddenly, he felt rigid and cocked an eyebrow. Her eyes glowed fiery and she pushed him back a bit. "You know that you don't have a chance, do you?" she asked him bluntly. Wolverine frowned, feeling scared first that her counterpart would show up. Then he realized that she was teasing him. "And ya know that I'm the father of ya kids, do ya?" He shot back looking down and feeling sick. "So ya want me to give up?"

Jean shrugged. "Well, I could also send you through the garden like a ball. Especially since you love flying so much…"

He snorted. "Ya wouldn't do that!"

"You bet!"

Looking down again he suddenly felt his stomach turning. She was right. He hated flying and he knew that she would do it at least once. Sighing, he finally nodded. "Fine, put me down!"

Smiling brightly, Jean landed on the ground again. Looking aside, she didn't notice his evil smirk. With one jump he'd pinned her down to the ground and the Danger room turned back to normal. Cocking a surprised eyebrow, Jean looked up at him. She'd fallen for his trick. "You cheated!" she complaint while he still sat astride on her and kept her immobile to the ground. Logan only shrugged. "Well, then ya finally know what it feels like, darlin'. And I never said I gave up!" Narrowing her eyes she wanted to send him backwards as he kissed her.

"Idiot!" Jean cursed when he lifted her up. "You know that I've won! You said fine put me down!"

Logan shook his head. "Never said _yeah, you've won, Red_! And besides, ya knew that I'd won in the gym," he gave back. "Ya not the only one who can play dirty, gorgeous!" Snorting, she crossed her arms in front of her chest. Chuckling, he pulled her close and gave her another kiss. "Come on, honey! Who's the sourpuss now, eh?" Even if she tried to be angry, Jean had to smirk. "That's better!"

"I'll get my revenge!" she warned him and took his hand.

"Anytime, Jeannie," Logan replied before they joined the other's in the Conference-Room.

XXX

It was in the evening when most X-Men sat in the kitchen. Over dinner, Scott suddenly looked over to Kitty. "Can you tell me when he actually got you?" he asked her the question that kept on occupying him. "None of us had heard or saw anything."

"Well, don't ask me," the girl shrugged. "I was walking behind Peter and suddenly the room changed back to normal."

"Well, our feral boy was pretty quick in taking the newbies out." Beast nodded while he gave Scott a short look. "How're your ribs?"

"Fine again." He reached over the basket to Ororo. "So, what do you think about the results?"

Upstairs, Logan dozed on the bed while he snuggled up to Jean, who lay next to him. Resting his head in her shoulder he just enjoyed the feeling she gave him as she suddenly began to turn around. Growling, he opened his eyes briefly as she cuddled up to him this time. Logan snorted and put on a hurt face. "What's wrong?" she asked him confused and looked into his eyes.

"Nothing, apart from that it was my cuddling time, damn it," he snapped. Jean could only smirk and giggled. "Ya think that's funny? Ya interrupted my well-earned nap!"

"Oooh," Jean purred and suppressed a laugh. Shaking her head, she let go off him and rolled over her arms. "Come here you softie and stop that moaning!"

Growling slightly, he placed his head in her belly and closed his eyes again. Jean couldn't help but smile, even if a picture haunted her. He had done this so often during her pregnancy. Absently, she began to stroke his hair. "Still not used to it," he grunted and stroked her belly gently.

"To what?"

"Not hearing them here anymore," he replied sleepily.

She closed her eyes for a brief moment. "Well, you can see them instead…"

"I know. Still it's strange." Logan turned his head a bit and looked up at her. "Ya up for a movie? Otherwise I'll be asleep soon."

Jean nodded. "Yeah, why not?" Smirking he kissed her and got up. "I'll get the kids ready, you take a blanket! And no girly movie!"

XXX

Beast got another bottle of juice out of the fridge. "Still, we have to keep in mind what Charles said," he said before he joined the others again. "We made a lot of mistakes. If I think about it, I can't even believe how easily our feral friend eliminated us."

Yeah. When I think about it now," Ororo added, "then _I_ can't believe with how many more things I could have come up with."

Beast nodded. "And that's the point. We only had one adversary… Magneto might come up with a whole army."

Scott raised a hand. "Sorry when I correct you, but we had an adversary who was created to be an assassin!"

"He wasn't _created_!" she snapped and gave him an angry look. "He's not a thing!"

"Okay, trained, programmed…whatever!" he said to calm her again.

"Nonetheless," Hank intervened, "the exercise has clearly shown that we seriously have to make plans! Sabretooth might be not as dangerous as Logan…"

"He's far more dangerous than Logan!" Scott said in surprise.

"No, he's not! Logan can control the berserker. Sabretooth doesn't want to control him, which makes him act irrationally sometimes. Logan can calculate his attacks and only gives in to Wolverine if necessary or if he really can't stop him anymore," Hank explained and looked to and fro between them. Even the kids gave him their complete attention. "I once did a test on him. During a fight, his brain activity is as high as someone who would battle four master chess computers at the same time. And sorry if I might destroy your picture of Logan," he smirked and gave Scott an amused look. "But Sabretooth isn't the smartest. And Logan is far more experienced in life due to his expanded life span. You heard what Jean once said. He might even be older than the Professor and that gives him a great advantage! Don't forget he held back in the exercise!"

"True," Scott nodded.

"Whatever," Bobby intervened and stroked Rogue's back while she rested her head on his shoulder. "If Magneto shows up with an army… then we're in a lot of trouble! We managed fine on Alcatraz because we were supported by a whole army."

The others nodded lost in thoughts. "I still don't understand why Charles wants to keep Logan and Jean out of the battle," the blue mutant added. "They're the best offence we have…"

"If all else fails they're the last ones to protect the students. And someone has to stay with them!" Peter told them.

"Well, I hope it doesn't come that far," Scott replied calmly and put his glass down. "We have to attack them with everything we got. No matter if we kill them. It's either us or them this time!" He looked at the X-Men who only nodded before they turned their attention to the door.

"What?" Logan grunted since everyone stared at him as if he was from another planet. He shook his head and walked over to the cupboard. Soon the humming sound of the microwave echoed through the room. Logan lifted Jack up a bit and stroked his back while he prepared two bottles at the same time. Cocking an eyebrow, he gave the others an annoyed look. "Ya can go on talking about me. I don't care anyway!" he grunted, since no one said anything and they'd heard them talking before.

"We were actually talking about Magneto," Jubilee answered while she smiled at the boy.

"Hmm," he growled and took the popcorn out of the microwave before he tipped it into a bowl. Scott watched him leave. "I think I know why Charles wants them to protect the students…" It suddenly had hit him after he'd watched the small boy. Storm wrinkled her brows and also Hank waited for an explanation. "Think about it," their opposite continued and bent forward a bit. "If only one of the twins is in possession of both its parents powers and if Magneto gets his hands on them… They become a deadly threat!"

"Cyke," a chilly voice behind him suddenly said and the man turned around. Logan threw something into the trash bin. "Do ya ever dare to call my kids a threat again," he said menacingly and made the others look at each other, since they'd noticed the sparkle in his eyes. "And I show ya what kind of threat I can become. Got that, bub?"

"They'll become a threat in the wrong hands."

"We all can!" Logan shot back and gave him a warning look. "And if anyone only intends to hurt them, I'll kill that one! No matter whom it is!" With that he left.

"That's for sure," Bobby said impressed before he looked at his girlfriend. "Are you alright?"

She opened her eyes a bit. "Yeah, but tired." He rubbed her back a bit. "Come on, I'll take you upstairs." Getting off his stool he helped her off hers and laid a hand around her waist. "Night guys! And don't let the Wolverine bite you!"

"Bobby!" she warned. "He's not in his best mood, so don't push it any further!"

"Sorry," he excused calmly. "It was just a joke."

Rogue laid a hand on her abdomen. "He just wants to protect his family. I'd react in the same way if anything would threaten Isabella."

"I know," Bobby assured her seriously. "Me too…"

Smiling up at him, she leant against his shoulder before they entered the elevator.

"Okay, I'd say we plan another session for tomorrow," Scott said and nearly fell off his chair as a loud _bampf_ echoed through the kitchen. "What the…"

Like him, everyone else had jumped off his or her stools, thinking immediately that it was an attack. Closely and preparing themselves for a counter if necessary, they stared at the thick black smoke, which faded slowly.

"Oh, guten Tag!" Growling, Hank jumped forwards as Ororo held him back quickly. "Stop! It's a friend!" Cocking an eyebrow at her, Hank looked at the blue, devil-like mutant in front of him. "Who is this?"

Before Ororo could answer the addressed mutant got up from the floor. "Kurt Wagner. But in the Munich circus I was known as…"

"It's Kurt!" she intervened quickly before she smiled at her friend. "So good to see you!" Walking over to him, she embraced him tightly. Scott still looked at him skeptically. He remembered that Kurt had left after Alkali Lake since he couldn't deal with all the fighting. "What are you doing here?" he asked him harsher than he wanted to. "You left the team… So why are you back?"

Offended Kurt looked down while Ororo shot a deadly look at Cyclops. Laying a head on his shoulder she smiled warmly at Kurt. She couldn't tell why, but she was very glad to see him again. "Why are you back?"

His yellow eyes met her blue ones. "Logan called me. He said you guys need help."

"Why didn't he tell us?" Scott said annoyed. "He's the new leader, I know, so spare me that look, 'Ro! But he can't make decisions without telling us!"

"He called for help which we desperately need!" Hank gave back.

"And he knows what he's doing!" Peter added after shaking Kurt's hand. "Good to see you again, Kurt!" He finally had his Danger room partner back. With him and Logan he still loved to train the most. It was completely different with them than with Scott. Especially since Kurt taught them some acrobatically stuff, while Logan trained them in Martial Arts.

"Get a grip, honestly," Jubilee mumbled more to herself but Scott had heard it.

"Sorry for my manners," Hank changed the topic in surprise. "I'm Hank McCoy. Also called Beast. Nice to meet you!"

The other blue mutant shook his head. "Nice to meet you too, mein Herr!"

"Will you sit down or go to Logan and the Professor first?" Ororo asked him. "Are you hungry?"

"Nein danke," Kurt smiled at her shyly. "I'd like to talk to Logan first. He wanted me to do so."

"Okay, come one! I'll take you to him." She took him by the hand, which Hank noticed. "You'll be surprised when you see him!" She winked and walked down the corridor with him.

"Why?"

"Well, let's say it in Wolverine-terms," she smirked. "He's successfully reproduced himself and is now father of twins. But don't let it fool you!" she warned him. "He's still the same old grumpy Logan. Still, he's become pretty soft."

"Oh," Kurt made since it really was news to him. "Who's the mother?"

"Jean."

Surprised he stopped. "But she died… I saw it…"

Ororo sighed. "A lot happened since you left, Kurt," she explained calmly. "I tell you the short version."

In the TV-room, Jean rested between Logan's legs against his chest while Lily lay on her chest. Covered with a blanket they watched the first part of The Lord of the Rings in silence; both half asleep. Absently, Logan stroked her arms and gave Jack, who slept in his left arm a short loving look. "Here they are." Surprised both mutants looked up and saw Ororo approaching followed by someone they knew.

"Kurt," Jean gasped and lifted up a bit, holding her daughter tight. The blue mutant waved at her. Logan smirked. He'd not believed that Nightcrawler would react so quickly. He recalled the phone call they had earlier that day and how Kurt had stuttered some German stuff, which, to Logan's great surprise, he'd understood. "Du bist also doch gekommen, eh?" he asked him still smirking.

"What?" Jean had turned around quickly and gave him a strange look.

"What what?" he asked her back not knowing what she meant.

"What did you just say?"

"You heard me," Logan replied with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yeah, we heard it, but you spoke some other language," Storm explained, mildly surprised. Then she noticed the look Jean gave her. Wondering what it might be about she looked down.

"German," Kurt suddenly said. "You spoke German, my friend."

Looking at them in disbelief, Logan's mind kept on working. He hadn't noticed that he accidentally hadn't spoken English. He apparently had been too lost in his memory of their conversation on the phone and his shock as he realized that he understood him that he hadn't noticed it. He really needed to get some sleep… "Sorry, I said…so you came."

Jean still eyed him suspiciously. "How come you speak German?"

"Dunno!" he shrugged feeling uneasy with everyone staring at him. "I figured it out while speaking to him on the phone."

She nodded and started to think. If he was able to speak German he might even have knowledge of some other languages, too. "Did you ever look at the foreign languages books we have in the library?" she suddenly asked him since she too was curious.

Cocking an eyebrow at her he shook his head. "Nope, why?"

"Do it!" Jean said before she got up and shot another look at Ororo. "Kurt, you want to see the Professor?" she asked him and paying attention not to wake Lily.

"Yes, that would be nice," he replied.

She smiled at him, ignoring Ororo. "Come on. I'll take you to him." Leaving with him, she left the other two looking at them.

When Jean was far enough away, Ororo quickly turned around and gave Logan a frightened look.

"You didn't tell her, do you?"

"Are ya nuts?" he replied knowing immediately what she meant. "As long as ya don't, I don't."

"Then why is she looking at me like this?" she asked him despaired and kept on thinking if she might have done something wrong. Nevertheless, she couldn't remember anything…

"Dunno," Logan only grunted and got up.

XXX

Upstairs, Jean knocked on Scott's door and waited for him to open. She had to talk with someone. This picture was bothering her too much. "Hey," he said surprised and looked at her and the baby. "What's wrong?" Scott waved her in, since he could immediately tell that something was wrong. She looked very disturbed. Jean stepped inside and sighed, while he closed the door. "I…" she began and looked at her daughter for a brief moment.

"Hey," he said calmly and laid a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. You know you can tell me…"

"In the Danger room, after I manipulated the computer… I accidentally caught a picture from Ororo's mind," Jean explained nervously and swallowed.

Scott crossed his arms in front of his chest. "What was it about?"

Starting to breathe heavily she shook her head in despair and fought back tears. "Her kissing Logan," she replied barely audible and bit her lip. Scott let out a deep sigh and shook his head. "I warned you about him. I always said he'd hurt you one day…"

Jean swallowed and tried to control her emotions again. She didn't know what to think. "It was a strange scene… I don't know what to think about it." She looked down as she remembered what she wanted to ask him. "It was you who gave him the rings, wasn't it?"

Scott nodded slightly. "Yeah," he answered. "From the way he was acting when you were in that coma, I thought that he really loved you… Especially after what he did for you."

"But why did you do it?" she asked him in confusion and wrinkled her brows. "I always thought you hated him…" She felt her heart beating against her chest. She was too confused and disturbed to think straight.

"Beast said something," he said calmly and recalled the conversation he had with him months ago. "If you really love her, then you let her go… And you said you're happy with him. So I believed you…" He couldn't tell her how hard it actually was for him. How much it hurt him to stay calm while he saw the two of them together…

Jean was deeply touched. She didn't know that he still loved her that much and was even willing to let her go. She shed some tears due to the emotional roller coaster within her and hugged him. Scott closed his eyes while his heart broke. He still loved her so much that he couldn't even find words for it. Without thinking about it, he cupped her face and kissed her tenderly. Kissing him back first, Jean suddenly came to her senses again and broke the kiss. Looking at each other in shock, neither of them said anything first…

XXX

Logan sat in the kitchen and drank a beer while he smirked at Hank who acted all childish with Jack on his arms. Ororo and Kurt sat right next to him and also watched the scenery amused. "And I'm the softie, huh?" Logan chuckled and sipped on his beer as his nose suddenly caught a familiar smell. Turning around he saw Jean and Scott entering and his smile faded. Something was wrong about her. Ororo noticed it and gave Hank a worried smile. Stopping right next to them, Jean met Logan's eyes who eyed her suspiciously; he still tried to find out what was bothering him. Getting up, he bent down to her side and inhaled her scent. Slowly, he leant back again and narrowed his eyes. The others exchanged glances while Scott frowned. He just couldn't figure out what Logan was doing. Nevertheless, Jean knew. From the moment he'd looked at her she knew what was going on in his head. Her heart was beating strongly again. She felt scared… After looking down, Logan gave Scott a short look before he kissed her quickly. Breaking the kiss a knowing smirk was visible on his lips. Now he finally knew why she smelled different… Without looking at them again, Logan left the kitchen angrily.

"What was that?" Scott asked completely confused now.

Jean only stared down in shock. "He knows…" Quickly she handed over Lily to Kurt and ran after Logan. She had to explain it to him somehow. Stopping at the door, she saw him down the hall and ran. Finally she caught his hand. "Wait!"

Logan gave her an angry look. "Leave me alone!"

"No, you don't understand…"

He pulled his arms roughly away and made her back off a bit. "There's nothing I need to understand. Ya kissed him!"

Breathing heavily, on the one hand from running after him, on the other from the feelings, which kept on playing mad within her, she looked up at him. "He kissed me."

"Hope ya enjoyed it!" he hissed and turned around.

"You kissed her too, so where's the difference?" Jean suddenly yelled at him, feeling the disappointment in him now.

Snorting he had to smirk and faced her again. "So this is why ya acted so strangely, huh?" he shot back coldly.

"You have no right to be self-righteous here now, Logan!" she gave back. "So where's the difference?"

"The difference? I can tell ya where the difference is!" Logan yelled back. "She kissed me. I didn't kiss her back!"

"Me neither…," Jean replied and looked down.

"Ya think I'm stupid?" he hissed angrily and gave her a cold look. "Ya don't only smell like him… Ya also taste like him!"

In the meanwhile, Hank had asked Scott a couple of times what had happened. He knew that Logan was short of temper, but he could sense that this outburst they could hear from down the hallway had mainly to do with the man in front of him. Giving him an angry look, Hank waited.

"I kissed her," Scott finally admitted and looked away.

Hank let out a snort and shook his head. He couldn't believe that Scott was really so stupid. "May I tell you what Wolverine's abilities are? Just in case you haven't noticed? Enhanced senses! Smelling AND tasting included!"

"Funny!" Scott snapped and shot a look at Ororo who was watching him.

Thinking for a short moment, Hank suddenly frowned. "That makes me think… Did I miss something or how comes he knows how you…taste?" Smirking he watched his opposite gritting his teeth in anger.

Suddenly, Logan reappeared. The anger he felt was clearly mirrored in his face as he stopped in front of Scott. Everyone thought he would kill Scott or hurt him as he grabbed the collar of the man in front of him. Roughly, Logan pulled him close and met his gaze. "Get out of my sight!" he hissed with a very low voice, which made the alarm ring out within the others. Scott pushed him away and was ready to fight him if necessary, while Logan growled threatening.

"Logan, keep calm. You can talk about it!" Hank intervened before the situation got worse and handed the baby over to Ororo. He wanted to be ready if the two men decided to cut their head's off.

"There's nothing to say!" Logan snapped. "I told ya to stay away from my girl, bub!"

"For what?" Scott replied sarcastically. "So that you can have a thing with her?" He nodded towards Ororo. Her eyes widened as she figured out that she's been right before. Jean had found out… She knew that everything was her fault. Looking to the side she noticed the look Hank gave her.

"Ya think that, huh?" Logan growled and felt his claws touching his skin. "Get out of my sight, bub or I swear to God I'll cut ya into pieces!"

Scott shrugged arrogantly. "I wanna see ya trying!" Nevertheless he was sick of the situation as Jean entered the kitchen. He turned around and took a tray into his hands. "I still have to feed Mystique anyway," he added and shot one last deadly look at Logan whose eyes already began to darken. "Besides…" he began but Jean raised a hand.

"Don't!" she begged him. Nodding he left, while she turned around to look at Logan who was still furious. "Logan, please…" she reached out and tried to touch him, but he pulled away.

"Remember us kissing at the Blackbird?" he asked her growling. "I surprised ya by doing it and ya couldn't pull away so fast. Same thing happened!" She only looked at him, still feeling the stitch in her heart. She didn't know what to believe, even if she knew he wouldn't lie to her. "If ya don't believe me ask her or look for yourself, but I'm not gonna discuss this trust issue again!" he hissed coldly feeling his heart breaking within his chest. "Either ya do trust me or we leave it!" He gave her an angry look, while Hank and Kurt only exchanged glances. Ororo panted and felt tears gathering in her eyes. This really was her fault… Jean hid her pain and returned the look he gave her. "So… You gonna tell me that it's over?" she asked him bluntly, fighting the voice in her head which told her to stop.

Logan shrugged emotionless. "Depends on ya. But I'm sick of discussing it over and over again…"

Before Jean could answer, Ororo intervened by jumping off her stool. "Please stop!" she begged. Crying heavily she turned to face Jean who only gave her a short look before she met Logan's eyes again. "It's my fault, Jean, really!" she cried pleadingly. "Please don't blame him. It was my entire fault, I swear!" Finally, her opposite's cold eyes met hers. "Ignore me for the rest of your life, but please don't split! The two of you have a family now… It was really only my fault!"

Logan leant against the counter, both arms crossed in front of his chest. He didn't look at her or Jean. Hank cleared his throat to get the attention of them. He looked at them completely serious. "She's right! The two of you have these two kids here," he began as calmly as possible, working with all his diplomatic tricks. "You can't bite each other's heads of each time you have a fight… Even if this here was serious, it's not only about the two of you! And your decision will also affect the two here. And besides," he continued and met Jean's and Logan's eyes, knowing that they were thinking about what he said. "You love each other." Jean swallowed and looked at Logan like a schoolgirl who just had her first telling off with her headmaster. He returned her look but still showed no emotions. It was hard to tell what he was really thinking. She knew he was shutting himself off to protect himself from any more painful things…

XXX

In the basement, Scott had reached Mystique's cell at the same time after Logan and Jean had start fighting again. He shortly noticed her three new scars, which were clearly visible on her blue skin. Everyone who met her immediately knew whom she fought against. All three scars consisted of three scratched each. The mark of Wolverine… He didn't say anything and kept on preparing the meal for her, but she smirked. She could tell by the look of him that he wasn't in a good mood. Even if she was kept in this place for months now, she still knew her order. Even if being captured wasn't plan, she recalled that she was supposed to make trouble. It had worked well with Wolverine, so why shouldn't it work with him too? "Pissed off?" Mystique asked him smiling.

"Shut up!" Scott replied and pulled the tray through the small opening in the bars.

She still smiled. It couldn't be more perfect that he was apparently angry. "Why?" she asked, acting as if she hadn't hurt him before. "Did you finally found out what your precious girlfriend and Wolverine did in the woods at Alkali Lake?"

Scott frowned for a brief moment and looked in her smiling face. "I already know it," he hissed. "So save your breath!"

"You know about the kiss," she purred, "or what happened afterwards in Jean's tent?" Still smirking at him she watched him meeting her eyes skeptically. Mystique knew she was going to win this…

XXX

Just as Jean was about to say something, Scott stormed into the kitchen. Immediately the others looked at his furious face. "So the two of you only kissed once, huh?" he said to Jean through gritted teeth. Slowly and not knowing what changed his mood so drastically, Jean backed off a little. The sight of him scared her. She had never seen him like that before. The others were now completely confused. A minute ago the thought they'd finally helped Logan and Jean overcome their fight and now Scott came up with another problem. Logan watched him closely as Scott walked over to Jean. He instantly knew that this would end bed… Instinctively, he positioned himself in front of her. "What has gotten into you, bub?" he asked him and cocked and eyebrow in confusion.

"Shut up, Logan! I warn you, just shut up!" Scott suddenly exclaimed and his muscles tensed, while Jean winced and stepped behind Logan; grabbing his arm in fear.

"What's wrong with you?" Hank now asked since he didn't understand anything.

Scott gave a derisive laugh. "What's wrong?" he asked sarcastically and smiled. "Nothing! Besides the fact that they'll had quite a lot of fun together in the woods at Alkali Lake," he added through gritted teeth. "Right, Jean?" He glared at her with pure hatred, while her eyes widened in shock. She didn't know how he found out, but she was sure he didn't mean the kiss… The other only looked to and fro between them; confusion clearly mirrored on their face.

"Look, ya got the whole point wrong!" Logan tried it calmly but Scott immediately grabbed his collar and slammed him against the counter. Being awoken by the unfamiliar noise, Lily and Jack started to cry heavily. Ororo gave Kurt a look and he understood what she meant. "We'll wait outside!" she said to Jean and both left while they tried to soothe the twins.

Logan felt the rage coming up within him again. "Let go of me, boy!" he warned his opposite with a more then menacing voice. He felt how he lost his temper quickly. Grabbing him angrily, he tried to get rid off him, but Scott held on tightly. Jean swallowed hard. She had to do something. "Scott, please let me explain…"

He gave her a cold look and for the first time ever, he was glad that no one could see his eyes. "There's nothing to explain," he nearly yelled at her. "You betrayed me with him and lied to me about it!"

"No, it wasn't like that!" she begged him in despair; feeling completely lost right now.

Again, Logan tried to get rid off him and growled threatening. "Mystique told ya, right?" he stated, knowing that she was the source of it. "Very reliable source," he added sarcastically.

"Scott, calm down and let us talk", Hank begged him now and got off his chair.

"Talking won't do", Scott hissed. "Hope you had fun with her!" Furiously, he pushed Logan roughly away and looked at Jean with cold and hurt eyes. "I never realized you were such a slut!" Angrily, Logan jumped at him and punched him hard into the face. Grabbing him roughly, he threw the man against the counter, pinning him to it, while his claws cut through his skin. "Don't ya ever dare to call her like that again!" he barked and pushed him aside. With a loud sound, Scott smashed into the fridge before Hank was able to intervene. By looking at Logan he knew that Wolverine was not only close by anymore. To him it appeared more that both were in this room at the same time… "Stop it! Don't make it worse!" he begged his friend and watched how he breathed heavily, fighting against the beast within him. Jean wasn't able to move. She had trouble to realize everything that happened in the last hour. She couldn't believe that Scott really found out… That one got up from the floor panting and walked towards the door. "You two really fit!" he snapped disgusted. "After the fight is over, I'll leave! Then you can have as much fun as you want. I don't give a damn about anyone of you anymore!" He left outraged, while Jean buried her face in her hands. Sliding to the floor she began to cry heavily. Ororo and Kurt reentered with widened and disturbed eyes. Exchanging glances with Hank, they understood that it was better not to say anything. He looked at Logan who supported himself against the counter, eyes closed and the head lowered. He fought hard against Wolverine, tried to lock him into the cage again while he roared within him. Hank slowly kneeled down next to Jean, while Ororo and Kurt still watched the whole scenery. "What was this about," Hank asked softly. "What did he mean?"

Logan turned around. His eyes mirrored the battle he was still fighting. "Nothing!" he snapped.

"That wasn't _nothing_, Logan!"

Ignoring the blue mutant, he looked at Jean who was still crying and sobbing heavily. Kneeling down next to her he pulled her close. She immediately clung to him desperately.

"What was the stuff with Alkali Lake about?" Hank asked again.

"Leave it!" Logan hissed annoyed while he tried to soothe Jean.

"No, I won't leave it!" his opposite gave back. "We are in a critical time here right now and don't need any stories to distract us, Logan!"

Logan got angrier with every second. "Last warning!" he hissed. "It's nothin' to ya!"

"It is, since it affects the X-Men!" Hank gave back, aware of his opposite's eyes changing. "So what was it about?"

"We kissed, End of story!" Logan snapped menacing.

"But Scott wouldn't be that pissed off of that was all," Ororo now intervened. "Especially since he already seemed to know about it."

Beast switched to Logan again. "What else happened?"

"Nothin'!"

"Logan! What else" he demanded harshly. "And stop growling at me!"

For the first time ever, Logan felt Wolverine battling him to protect his family. Roaring within him, the beast wanted to protect his mate by all means. He felt her stress and despair deep inside of him. And this was what made Wolverine refuse to give up this time. Logan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Jean also felt it and lay her hand on his to help him. She knew he was fighting hard.

"Excuse me," Kurt suddenly said. "But they did nothing else…"

Everyone looked at him in surprise and confusion. "How do ya know?" Logan asked him skeptically.

Kurt felt embarrassed. "I saw the two of you… Entschuldigung!" Logan snorted and still tried to soothe Jean.

"This can't be all!" Hank shook his head.

"It is, damn it!" Logan said aloud and gave him a warning look.

"Then why did Mystique lie?" Ororo asked.

Jean finally sat up a bit, while Logan still held her. "She didn't," she said barely audible. Before he could stop her, she went on. "She tried a trick on Logan and me."

Hank frowned. "What kind of trick?"

"Seducing him by looking like me in example…"

"I see," Ororo nodded. She thought she'd figured out the problem.

"Logan didn't fall for it," Jean went on while she kept her eyes to the ground.

"But", Hank asked wanting to know the truth.

"She did," Logan finally admitted and heard how the others let out a deep breath. They shook their heads.

"The two of you should really write a book," Hank said. "Something like _How do I make complicated things even worse?_"

Logan got up and helped Jean to her feet. Gently he wiped away her tears and embraced her tightly for a brief moment. "I'm sorry… I really have a knack for trouble!" she said and bit her lip while new tears gathered in her eyes.

"Yeah," Hank nodded. "That's why the two of you fit so well together!" he added ironically.

Jean looked at him with despaired eyes. "I'm really sorry for everything…" He nodded and looked down. "Yeah, me too."

The blue mutant smirked as they kissed shortly. "So what now?"

Logan gave him a cold look. "I'm going to visit this blue bitch!"

"But you won't…" Ororo began and he shook his head.

"Kill her? No…I'd do worse." With that he walked towards the door.

"Logan! You can't beat her up," Hank warned him.

Smirking, he turned around. "Who said anything about that?" He left before anyone could stop him. Jean swallowed once more and ran a hand through her face. "I'll go and try to talk to Scott," she said calmly before she looked at Kurt and Ororo. "Can you take the kids upstairs and wait for us?" They nodded and she left, too.

Hank let out a deep breath and shook his head. "Gosh," he sighed. "Can you even imagine what they'll put us through once they are married!" He looked at Ororo who kept her eyes on the floor nervously. "And now to you," he announced in his best lecturer tone. "How can you kiss him if you know that he's spoken for, girl? Do you want to join their troublemaker team," he asked her in a strict tone. "You know how the beasts within them react if someone tries to get between them!" Kurt only stared at them speechless. His mind couldn't even follow all the new impressions since so much had change while he was absent…

Logan reached the basement and headed down towards the cell tract. Mystique looked up as the double X-door opened but didn't smile when she saw her visitor. He only gave her a short look, before he leant against the wall and lit up a cigar. Watching the smoke for a short time he finally looked at her. "Good job!" Mystique narrowed her eyes and didn't reply. He smirked knowing that this would become interesting. "Ya know. There's a question I can't answer," he continued and leant back a bit. "Why did ya go back to Magneto, eh?"

"What's it to you?" she asked back in a chilly voice.

He still smirked. From her reaction he could tell that this topic made her very angry. "All those years, ya think you've got a family…ya do everything for him, every dirty job…" Slowly she came closer to the bars. Her yellow eyes mirrored the upcoming anger, which became stronger within her. Logan noticed it satisfied. "Then, ya save his ass, because he means a lot to ya," he went on, ignoring how she gritted her teeth. "And what did he do?" He gave her a provocative smirk. "He abandons ya after everything you've done for him. He leaves ya naked and unprotected on the ground and tells ya, ya don't belong to them anymore… And why?" he asked her and put his cigar out. "Because you'd become what he hates…"

"Stop it!" she suddenly yelled at him and her muscles tensed. Violently, she punched against the bars. Quickly, Logan grabbed her arms and pulled them through the bars, pressing her tightly against it and making it impossible for her to move an inch. "He treats ya like shit and expels ya…and ya just go back and be his lapdog again?"

"They're my family!" she hissed and tried to free herself from his tight grip.

"Magneto doesn't even know what that means!" He let go off her. "A family stands by your side no matter what. They don't use or abandon you…" Logan looked at her closely. From the look of her eyes, even if she tried to hide it, he noticed that she was thinking about the things he said. "You know Rogue, don't cha?" he suddenly asked her more calmly. "She took the cure and came back… We didn't tell her _you're human so piss off_. That's what family means… Stick together no matter what happens. And not what this bastard offers ya."

Mystique stepped closer again. Her eyes gave him a cold look. "Something like your family doesn't exist!" she said in a menacing slow voice. "Mine tried to kill me!"

"And? Did he do any better?"

"What do you know?"

"A lot!" Logan gave back and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I didn't believe in it, either until I came here." He had watched her the whole time through. Noticed her body language, which couldn't betray him. He had her exactly where he wanted her to be. He only had to push her a bit further… "We'd never abandoned you if you're one of us. Once one of us, always one of us. No matter what happens to ya," he went on. "And that's the crucial difference between us and them!" Mystique, even if she didn't show it, was shocked. It was exactly what she'd thought after Magneto had left her helplessly in the truck. After the hate against him had become stronger. She'd asked herself what the X-Men would have done if he'd been one of them… And she'd known the answer immediately. They wouldn't have left her alone… "I thought ya were smarter, ya know?" Logan said. "Instead ya go back to him." He gave her one last accusing look before he turned around. He knew he reached his aim and smirked in satisfaction. He began to count from five backwards in his head.

"What do you want?" Mystique suddenly asked calmly and he stopped.

XXX

Later Logan lay on his bed with his babies right next to him. He still heard Scott yelling at Jean while she tried to explain everything to him. Sighing, he rolled over; recalling how she'd begged him to stay out of it and not to intervene no matter what he hears. He accepted. If she wanted to try it, he would let her. But he knew that nothing and no one would stop him if she came back with only the tiniest bruise. Logan smiled when his daughter stretched out her fist. Touching her small hand with his finger gently, she immediately clung to it. By looking closely at them, he couldn't believe that both of them looked nothing like Jean. Lily, as well as Jack, had his dark hair. He still couldn't tell how much their eye color would change in the next months, but up to now it was most likely that they inherited his eyes, too. On the one hand it made Logan more than proud that his kids were so much like him, on the other hand he'd liked to see that at least one of them had Jean's features. Still he wondered what their mutation was like. If Scott was right and only one of them had both its parents' abilities… Suddenly, Jack made a loud squeaking noise that made Lily widen her eyes and stop her movements. Logan rolled over onto his belly and gave his son an amused look. "Jeez, pal! We definitely have to work on that one," he said smirking. A familiar smell caught his nose and he made a face. "Thanks mate. You just made my day perfect!" Logan got up from the bed and laid Lily into her cradle. Taking Jack into his arms and placing a loving kiss on his cheek, he walked over to the bathroom. After giving him a bath and new diaper first, he fed him before he laid him down into his bed. Then he did the same with Lily. Just as Logan sat on the bed and watched her drinking, while telling her that he hoped that both of them hopefully hadn't inherited ever feature of his hair, Jean returned. He shortly looked up at her, seeing her exhaustion and the smile she gave him, before she sat down next to him. "You already prepared them for bed?" she asked surprised since it was the first time he hadn't desperately called for help while changing a diaper.

"Yeah," Logan grunted. "Bathed, changed and fed." He put the bottle aside and took the girl into his arms, patting her back gently. "And?"

She sighed and ran a hand through her face. "I managed to calm him again. It will take some time, but he'll get over it I think."

"Good." He got up and took the girl over to their room. Kissing her gently, he laid her down and stroked her cheek once more. "Night pumpkins!" he said calmly, before he put out the light of the small lamp and close the door a bit. Logan saw how Jean stood frozen in front of the open wardrobe and stared into it. "I told every X-Men to have their uniforms ready in their rooms," he explained, since he had noticed that she was staring at the black leather. "It'd take too long to head down to the basement and change there."

Slowly, she turned around. "I see." Taking new clothes for the night out of it, she closed the door. "I wanted to shower. You coming?"

Logan shrugged. "Actually, I already showered with Mystique and 'Ro…"

Jean gave him a warning look. "I said I was sorry!"

He gave her the impression that he didn't care a bit. "Did I get an _I'm so sorry_-kiss? No, I didn't!"

Shaking her head while smirking, she walked over to the bathroom and turned the lights on. "You might get something else if you're coming…" Cocking an eyebrow, Logan smirked devilishly and also took a fresh boxer out of the drawer before he joined her. Closing the door behind him, Jean's squeal soon echoed through it…

XXX

In the middle of the night, Logan suddenly awoke by hearing a noise. Feeling Jean next to him, who'd cuddled up to him tightly, he soon figured out that it was Jack. Cautiously, he got up and walked over to the kid's room. Carefully, he took the boy into his arms and tried to soothe him. Since it attempts didn't work, Logan decided to leave the room before Jean or Lily would awake too. Making his way down to the kitchen, he kept on talking with the boy calmly and stroked over his back gently. When he reached the room on the lower level, Jack had almost stopped crying. "Ya only wanted to stroll around, huh?" Logan asked amused and met his eyes. "That's my boy!" Still smiling, he decided to drink something before returning to his room. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that someone had let the window tilted. Shaking his head, Logan asked himself how often the kids had to be told to close them before going to bed. He was just about to open the fridge as he suddenly froze. Turning his head quickly, he concentrated hard on the noise he heard on the outside. All of a sudden, he felt his heart rate kicking into high gear and he sniffed. Without thinking twice, Logan held his son tight and ran down the corridor as fast as he could. Only seconds later, the alarm set off…

**First of all, I'm terribly sorry that it took so long this time. But this chapter really gave me a headache! I wrote the beginning and knew how the chapter would end, but I couldn't find anything for the middle part. I had written the fight-training scene with Logan and the kids first and this ending here was actually planned for chapter 37. But as I said I had to change plans. ;) Thanks to Tamara, she really helped me with some tips. ;) She will also do the beta on this one again. So, hope you can forgive the delay! And that you enjoyed the chapter. It really is the longest so far. I first wanted to split it, but decided it was a bad idea. I planned chapter 40 to be the last. Hope I can keep this plan. LOL I also wanted to write a Prologue and Epilogue, too. But after writing the next too. ;) Tanks for your reviews again! Please review on this one here too and tell me what you think! ; ) See ya and thanks for your support!**


	40. Chapter 39

**Changes Chapter 39**

Magneto only smirked as he heard the alarm setting off in the mansion. "Charles…," he said ironically and mocked the attempt his old friend has started to protect the school. He knew that the X-Men were outnumbered, no matter if most windows and doors were shutting down by thick protective doors. With Mystique inside, his Brotherhood, even if not as large as on Alcatraz, had a total number of 30. His group now was far more powerful than during the incident back then. Magneto had taken care of looking for more powerful mutants and he had successfully found them…

He was also aware that even with Phoenix inside, his group was a far greater threat. Especially because he'd make plans: He knew which mutant of his group could deal with which X-Men. And he had especially some surprises for the two strongest mutants inside the mansion. With his mutants he wouldn't have to take care of the Wolverine by himself…

With a satisfied smile, he turned around to his brothers, who only waited for the show to start. "My brothers," he began smiling and raised his hands shortly to get their fullest attention. "Now is the time to show those traitors how we deal with them! Don't take care of the students inside, my friends. Our aim is the X-Men!" He walked up and down the line his group built. "I doubt they will come outside so quickly. They might want us to come in." He smiled knowingly. "Let them believe that this will change their fate today! We know better!" Some members cheered, others only smiled devilishly; especially Pyro, Juggernaut and Sabretooth. Magneto stopped in front of them. His arms rested behind his back. "Khan, you take care of Cyclops and afterwards you'll help Emma, Unus, Shadowking and Bloodscream to deal with Phoenix." Khan, a huge man with white hair and red eyes, who was a master of strategy and perfect in many armed and unarmed fighting styles only nodded. Still, he didn't bother to look at his comrades who were supposed to build a team with him. "Avalanche, Leash, Vertigo," Magneto continued. "Your target is that weather witch." He glanced at Vertigo. "And you also help Deathbird with Angel!" The two women looked at each other briefly and nodded. "Spiral and Equilibrius, the two of you deal with those kids…Shadowcat and Jubilee. They are easy to taken care of!" The leader looked to and fro until he found the mutants he was looking for. "Gladiator, Barbarus and Juggernaut, your aim is the Russian kid Colossus."

"Crap!" Juggernaut cursed and stamped his foot. "I wanted to kick this runts butt!"

"You can deal with Wolverine afterwards!" Magneto sighed. "Vargas, you'll deal with our precious Hank McCoy first. Afterwards with Wolverine." He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Thanks to our telepaths, we know that some kids and old team members take part into this battle, too." He smirked. "They are no match for us, my brothers! Wildchild, you take care of Magma, Mesmero of Karma." He met Mesmero's eyes. "You might also have some fun with Phoenix and Wolverine." His eyes darkened for a brief moment by the thought of the new leader of the X-Men. "Well…," again he looked to and fro. "Vanisher, Exodus…your target is Nightcrawler. Piper, Lupo and Lupa, you'll deal with Wolsbane. Nightside with Sunfire." Magneto mentally checked the list he'd made. "And I don't have to tell you, who your adversary is, do I?" he asked Pyro who only smirked in response, while he stood with arms crossed in front of his leader. "And now my special gift to our beloved Wolverine…" Magneto's face immediately became hatred. "Sabretooth, Wendigo, Cyber,…" His eyes kept looking around. "Vargas, Bloodscream and Juggernaut. Take this runt out!" he said through gritted teeth while his fist clenched violently. "I don't even want to see him in one piece afterwards. Do you understand me?" he continued. "I don't care what you do to him, as long as you finish him once and for all!" The six mutants only nodded grinning. "If you find Mystique, let her out. She knows what to do."

"Hey, what about me?"

Magneto turned around and looked into Multiple Man's face. "You can take part in any battle you'll like," he said dryly. "I thought that was obvious…"

The mutant shrugged. "'Kay. Fine with me!"

The master of magnetism could only sigh in frustration and shook his head before he looked at the mansion again. "And now my brothers,…let's go!"

As soon as the alarm was activated, all hell broke lose inside the mansion. The students ran hither and thither around in panic, while Logan ran up the stairs towards his room. Jean was already up and looked at him frightened. He carefully laid his son down before he walked over to the wardrobe. Pulling his and her uniform out of it, he grimly turned around again. "You ready?" Jean nodded nervously and took the uniform out of his hands. Quickly, they dressed before both of them took their children and the bags they'd prepared and walked out on the corridor. Storm and Cyclops were already advising the students into which direction they'd to go, while the voice of the Professor echoed through the mansion; telling them to keep calm. "Come on, kids! This way!" Logan said and pointed down the corridor.

"Beast and Colossus are further down!" Storm said. "As soon as the students are safe, we shut the place down!"

Logan nodded before he looked at his comrades. "If you need help, tell us!" They nodded.

"Be careful!" Jean said before they ran into the other direction. Both lead the students to the emergency exit where Beast and Colossus were already waiting. They hold the hidden door open and counted the students who came past them. "Rogue and Moira are already inside," Beast explained and watched the last students disappearing. "That's the last one."

Logan nodded and held the wooden door open for Jean who slipped through it. He looked at both men grimly. "If something goes wrong…"

Beast nodded. "We'll let you know. Take care of them!" He laid their leader a hand on the shoulder.

"I will!" Logan replied before he closed the door behind him and turned to Jean who had waited for him on the other side. The wet ground splashed under their feet as they ran down the long tunnel; holding their babies tight. As soon as they reached the huge room, Logan began to check his surroundings. "Is everyone here?" he asked aloud. "Check if someone's missing!" He handed Jack to Moira and waited for an answer, while Jean sat down next to Rogue who looked rather exhausted.

"Luke is not here!" a little girl suddenly said and looked up to her teacher.

Logan snorted, turned quickly around and ran down the tunnel again. On midway, he met the small boy who was panting in exhaustion an also fear. "Come on," the grown up said and pulled him up; running back with him to the hiding place. Reaching the room again, Logan put him down and locked up the door from the inside. Mentally he told the Professor that everyone was in safety for this moment. He ran a hand through his face, before he turned towards the frightened children. "Stay calm and sit down. Nothing's gonna happen t'ya!" He watched as they obeyed. Some clung to each other, others sat down crying silently or were shaking all over. Sighing, Logan sat down next to Jean. She'd wrapped her arms around her body. Gently he laid a hand on her shoulder. "Ya alright?"

She looked at him and shook her head. "I'm scared…," she admitted barely audible and he pulled her close.

"Me, too," Logan replied before he glanced at Rogue. "Kid, are ya alright? Even snow has more color than you…"

The young women nodded, while her face was covered with sweat and took a few deep breaths. "I'm fine."

"Lay down," Moira told her and pushed her gently back on the bed she sat on. "Are you in pain?" she asked her worriedly, but Rogue shook her head. "As soon as you feel worse, let me know!" She gave Jean and Logan a worried look, since the girl was nine month pregnant and due soon.

Jean leant against Logan's shoulder and tried to calm her racing heart. Everything just happened too fast. She had been awoken by the alarm, Logan was gone and in the next second she wore her uniform again… Lost in thoughts she took his hand into hers; squeezing it briefly. "Do you think they'll be alright up there?"

"I hope so," he replied while he stared at the door in tension.

Upstairs, in the meanwhile, Cyclops stood in front of the thirteen X-Men and looked to and fro between them. "Okay, the Professor is already linked to Cerebro," he said while he crossed his arms in front of his chest. "We shut the whole building down. All emergency exits are secured and can only be opened from within. Is there anything else we forgot?"

Storm thought about it but shook her head. "No, I think that mainly was everything Logan wanted us to do."

"Is every headset working properly?" Scott asked and they nodded. "If anything happens, report to the Professor and the others immediately. Let them know where you are, what you see and especially if you're injured or need help!" He looked down the corridor for a brief moment. "If the situation gets completely out of control, inform Phoenix and Wolverine immediately!" He looked at the younger mutants and the newbies. He could tell that they were frightened. "You can still go downstairs! No one will blame you for it," he told them being completely serious.

"No," Karma said and Magma, Sunfire and Wolfsbane also shook their heads after they'd exchanges glances. "Wolverine told us the risks… He taught us everything we need to know, so either we make it or not. At least we try it!"

Scott had to smirk. "Yeah, it's obvious who your teacher is…" The smile faded quickly. "Is everyone ready?" They nodded with hardened features on their faces. Their tension was obvious. "Okay, then let's go!" Together they walked out of the back door into the garden where they immediately faced the Brotherhood.

As soon as their adversaries made the first step, the air cooled down and heavy rain set in. Just as she reached the outside, Storm rose into the air above all others. Her hair was blowing about in the heavy storm she caused, while her eyes glowed white in anger. Avalanche, a man of average height and dark hair, and Vertigo, a woman with green hair, looked up to her. Their faces mirrored the hate and anger they felt, while their eyes suddenly caught Vanisher, a man who looked more like one of the gentleman from Buffy and who was about to attack Nightcrawler. "Hey!" Vertigo called to get his attention. "Can you get her down?" Vanisher only looked up briefly and smiled devilishly. With a loud noise he disappeared.

Clenching her fists, Storm fired heavy lightning bolts right into the middle of the group Multiple Man had just created of himself. Satisfied she heard his loud cry and saw his duplicates vanishing. Just as she was about to attack Magneto, who she'd spotted at the woods surrounded by Sabretooth and some other weird looking mutants, she screamed. Arms grabbed her roughly from behind, leaving streaks on her throat and hip, while she suddenly hit the ground hard. Coughing heavily, she held her hip and stroked over her burning neck. Opening her eyes a bit, she only saw someone disappearing. Storm shook her head slightly and got up; looking directly into the smirking faces of three mutants. Tensing her muscles she turned her head. Whoever had grabbed her had left her far away from the others.

"All alone X-Man?" the green haired woman asked smirking. "Good that we're here, huh?"

Shrieking Storm fell to the ground again without anyone even touching her. Confused she looked at the woman who called herself Vertigo. Whatever she did, it affected her balance a lot. A shadow jumped at her. Again hands grabbed her roughly. It was Leash, a huge black-haired woman who was at least two heads taller than her. She began to punch her three times hard into the face and abdomen, before she kicked her brutally to the ground. Groaning, Storm held her belly. Tasting the blood in her mouth, her eyes glowed white. Clenching her fist, which were soon covered by lightning, she was just about to hit them as the earth around her shook heavily and distracted her.

"Not gonna happen!" Avalanche told her in a menacing voice. Together with Leash he pounced on her. She yelled several times under their heavy attacks, felt blood covering her face while her body began to hurt badly. Desperately, Storm tried to fight back, tried to attack them, but she couldn't counter their fast attacks. Vertigo stood smiling next to them and watched her comrades dealing with their enemy. The painful screams and groans were only music in her ears. She knew they were only playing with the white haired X-Man. She knew it was her time to keep her off balance every time they let go of her; giving her the impression that she had a chance against them. Laughing, she began to enjoy this game a lot…

_Bampf. _

Screaming, Vertigo suddenly was high in the sky and fell down to earth with full speed.

_Bampf. Bampf._

The next two times hit Leash and Avalanche hard in the back. Turning around, they looked into vanishing black smoke. Before they could realize it, they were grabbed, kicked, punched or thrown to the ground, without seeing their attacker. Storm looked up panting. She knew who was helping her. Taking her chance, she got up to her feet and concentrated. Looking up into the sky, her eyes began to glow white again and she raised her hands up. Her adversaries had noticed it immediately and turned after being attacked once more.

"You damn weather witch!" Avalanche cursed and was about to cause another earth quake, as a huge lightning bolt hit Storm's hands.

"And this is for you!" she hissed menacing before she laid all her fury and hate into her attack. Yelling, she sent both Brotherhood members backwards; not stopping her attack before both weren't moving anymore. Panting, she fell on her knew as the pain and dizziness finally overwhelmed her. _Bampf._ "Thank you," she whispered, knowing that Kurt was behind her. Feeling hands touching her, she heard the sound again and soon she stood in a small room on the lower level of the mansion. Cautiously, Nightcrawler helped her to sit down on the blue sofa, before he kneeled down in front of her.

"Bitteschön," he replied and she smiled at him. Even inside, they could still hear the raging fight. Looking towards the secured window, his eye became worried when Storm gasped all of a sudden and cupped his face.

"You're hurt…," she noticed and stroked over his cut face.

"It's not so bad," Nightcrawler waved off. "You look worse." Getting up, he disappeared just to reappear with a first aid kit. Watching him treating and cleaning her wounds, Storm couldn't help but stare at his torn uniform.

"Who did this?"

He stopped as she winced when the antiseptic touched her skin. "Two mutants," he replied calmly. "One was like me. Vanisher. The other one also had Psi-powers. Exodus or something like that."

"So we were right that Magneto sends mutants against us who have the same powers as we do," she said more to herself. Seeing that he was done treating her facial wounds, she smiled at him. "Thanks. Now sit down and let me take care of yours."

Obeying to her, Nightcrawler did what she wanted. "Cyclops helped me. But I think he's in trouble. He was attacked by a huge man with a weapon."

"He will call for help if he needs some," she replied softly as her hand automatically touched her right ear. "No! I lost my headset…" Her blue eyes looked at his, but she couldn't find what she was looking for. "You, too…"

"That's why I am worried." Nightcrawler looked towards the window again.

After a while, she stroked over her work once more and put the kit away. "I'm done."

"Thank you," he said politely and got up. "You should rest a bit more. They hit you pretty bad."

"I'm fine." She nodded reassuringly and touched his cheek soothingly, but he shook his head, while taking her hands into his.

"No," he replied. "Wait a few minutes before you go out again."

Seeing his concern and fear for her, Storm finally nodded in agreement. "Be careful!" she said before he disappeared. Still looking at the spot where he'd stood a few seconds ago, she laid her hand on her chest to calm her racing heart. Heaving a deep sigh, she sat down again. Holding her side which hurt a lot, Storm moved into a more comfortable position. She definitely had to get some new headsets in case more of them got lost. Closing her eyes she leaned her aching head back a bit. She only hoped the others were fine…

"I'm sure he'll be!"

Opening her eyes wide, she directly looked into sharp fangs; black eyes staring down on her. Clenching her fist to attack him, Sabretooth grabbed her throat roughly and stopped her. Throwing her brutally to the ground, he pinned her down to it. "You still owe me a scream…"

XXX

Magneto's blue eyes watched the scenery in front of him. Satisfied he saw how his mutants kept the others busy while he waited impatiently. Looking to his right and left his telepaths were still concentrating.

"How long do we still have to shield X?" a white haired woman with icy blue eyes asked him.

"Just be patient, Emma," he replied and crossed his arms. As he was about to add something, Vanisher and Exodus appeared in front of him. "It's done! Mystique is free and X is taken care of…"

"Finally," Emma sighed frustrated and put her hands to her hips. "You didn't say that this would be so much work!"

Magneto gave her an odd look. "What do you think," he asked her bluntly. "That Charles Xavier wouldn't try to stop us from hurting his precious X-Men? Wait until Phoenix appears!"

"She won't be so hard to handle," the woman replied self-assured. "She has no chance against us!"

Magneto cocked an eyebrow at her. Let them believe it, he thought. For him most of them were only pawns. Dispensable in that war. With the students inside he would soon have a larger army. Students who he could form until they were ready to fight for his dream.

"This is crap!" Juggernaut suddenly cursed behind him. "Where is this runt? I want to hurt him!"

"I don't know where Wolverine is," the master of magnetism sighed. As he said dispensable… "Phoenix isn't here too," a ghost like bestiary figure on Magneto's right added in a daemonic voice. "But I can feel her presence."

Surprised Magneto turned towards him. "Where?"

"They are inside the building," Shadow King went on, concentrating on the trace of power he could feel. "Underground."

"Charles," Magneto shook his head with an amused smile. "He really thinks they can protect them."

Emma stopped in front of him, arms crossed with a bored expression on her face. "So? What now?"

His eyes switched towards the red beams which suddenly appeared on the roof of the mansion. He thought about his plan. He wanted them. Especially _their_ offspring…. He didn't even dare to imagine how powerful their kid was when it inherited both its parents' powers. A mutant with two daemonic souls within him…half of the Wolverine, half of the Phoenix. He definitely had plans for that child. With a devilish smile he turned towards his telepaths. "Find them and bring me their child," he ordered them darkly and watched them leaving. "Take Unus with you and be wary of the Wolverine. This runt will try anything to protect her!"

"He's no match for us!" Emma commented his warnings with a wave of her hand.

"Only that you can't touch him with your telepathy you stupid girl!" Magneto added through gritted teeth and narrowed his eyes. He watched them leaving and attacking several mutants on their way. Turning his head he gave Juggernaut a nod. "Until he shows up you can have some fun with this metallic kid over there!" He nodded towards Colossus who was occupied with two other mutants. Grinning Juggernaut ran off, causing the ground to vibrate heavily. Hearing a low growl from behind, the leader of the Brotherhood didn't need to turn around. He knew who it was. "Don't worry my brothers! Your time will come soon…"  
XXX

In the basement, Moira was walking up and down, checking her medical equipment for the at least one hundredth time. Growling while his eyes followed her the whole time, Logan sighed. "Make her stop or I'll do!"

"She's nervous and scared," Jean said soothingly.

"Yeah, we all are and she drives the kids crazy!" As he watched her controlling a monitor once more, he stood up with a low growl and grabbed her hand roughly. "Would ya stop it!"

Surprised about his action, she stared at him with widened eyes. Realizing it, she heaved a heavy breath and ran her other hand through her face. "Sorry…"

Giving her a stressed look, he finally returned to his seat again, as suddenly his headset cracked. Like him, Jean also concentrated on the hissing noise and tried to figure out who it was.

"Need help…anyone…," was all they could hear.

"It's the Furball," Logan stated and got up. He waited for the reply of others but there was none.

"Go!" Jean said calmly and looked up at him. "He needs you…"

Worriedly he looked at her and the kids. "What about you?"

Jean shook her head and also got up; standing right before him while the kids watched them frightened. They didn't want him to go. With him close they knew they were safe and protected. "I'll be fine. Don't worry."

"Sure?"

She saw his insecurity, felt the battle he fought within. She knew he didn't want to leave them. "Yeah." Hugging him tightly for a brief moment she closed her eyes. "Please be careful…"

Smirking at her he gave her one of his teasing looks. "Only if you blast everyone to ashes who tries to touch'em!" Returning his smile she nodded and squeezed his hand. "Good! I'll be right back. I'll contact you mentally when I'm in front of the door." He gave her a quick kiss and turned around towards the small escape hatch in the ceiling. "Charley really thought about everything," he thought and jumped. His hands grabbed the edge and he pulled himself up. Jean watched him disappearing through it and took a deep breath. She only hoped that he wouldn't feel how scared she actually was. She was now the only one left to defend the children and knew that she would hesitate in case of an attack. Knowing what she was capable of, she couldn't risk hurting anyone. Turning around as she hurt a sharp hiss, her eyes caught Rogue who was biting her lip. "What's wrong?" Jean asked worriedly and was immediately at her side. Laying a hand on her abdomen she knew it. Yeah, she really had a knack for trouble and difficult situations… "Come one, get up!" Helping her she carried her towards the second medical room, which was separated through a door from the other one.

Moira looked up as she entered it. "What…," she broke off as she saw the liquid on the ground. "Not now! Please don't tell me that this is true…" Walking over to the other two women, she helped Jean to carry Rogue to one of the empty beds. "Girl, why now?", Moira cried. Laying her down, she got the medical equipment while Jean stayed with her.

"Can you get Bobby?", Rogue asked through clenched teeth and started to cry. "Please get him!" she pleaded and grabbed the sheet.

Not knowing what to do, Jean turned her head as Moira reappeared. "I'll be fine here. It'll probably take some time. I'll call you if I need you!"

Nodding the red head took the girl's hand. "I'll contact Logan and tell him, all right?"

"Yeah," Rogue replied and groaned in pain.

"You'll be fine. Don't worry!" Jean assured her since she'd noticed the scared look on the girl's face. "Nothing will happen to you!" With a short squeeze of her hand, she returned to the students again.

XXX

Covering his eyes, Colossus tried to protect himself from the heavy storm Gladiator created by blowing out the air of his lungs. Hearing heavy steps behind him, the young men immediately knew who it was. Quickly he jumped aside and rolled off, just to smile in the next moment when he saw how Juggernaut crashed into his adversary. Red beams automatically shot from Gladiator's eyes; hitting everything in his surroundings but the target. A loud scream, echoed through the air behind him and announced Barbarus. Not turning quickly enough this time, two fists send Colossus to the ground. He really had enough of these two guys who kept on keeping him busy the whole time through. He almost felt the heat of Pyro on his skin, even if this one still fought against Icemen on the other side of the garden. Realizing that he had changed back to his normal form, he saw the blood dropping from his mouth and forehead. Changing quickly into his organic form again, he met the fist of his adversary and almost yelled. Barbarus took this moment to lift his enemy easily into the air and held him immobile above his head. "Hey Juggy," he called over to his companion who was about to lift the unconscious Gladiator from the ground. "Ready for some tackling?" Laughing about his enemy's futile attempts to get free, the strong mutant only grinned. With a devilish grin, Juggernaut ran towards his teammate who waited before he'd gained enough speed. "Bye bye!" Barbarus said laughing and threw Colossus right into Juggernaut's course. Satisfied he watched how his adversary was hit hard by the collision and flew threw the air like a puppet. Through the force and his own weight, Colossus tore a large gap into one wall of the mansion. Getting up, while shaking his head as the world spun around him, the heavy footsteps of Juggernaut came closer. Looking up, the X-Man only saw his enemy's helmet before two other walls were destroyed.

XXX

In the meanwhile, Logan had left the shaft and stood on the upper level of the mansion. Looking at his dusty uniform he only cocked an eyebrow at the leather which had been black before. He should tell Chuck that he really needed to clean up some corners of the mansion… Getting rid of as much dirt as possible he looked around and tried to figure out where Beast was. Sniffing he turned his head towards the lower levels. Not thinking twice, he ran down. His sensitive ears caught the noises from the outside; he also heard some which came from very close by. Following Beast's scent, he suddenly stopped as his nose caught the smell of blood. Looking around, his hazel eyes stopped at a small corridor which led to single rooms that were set up if students wanted to have some time for themselves. Logan narrowed his eyes as two other scents caught his nose. Growling he ran towards it at full speed. He soon stood in front of a shattered door and stopped panting. Clenching his fists his eyes widened as he noticed the destroyed interior of the room. Swallowing his heart kicked into high gear. He knew she was or had been here and he also knew that he had caught the scent of his arch nemesis… Entering the room silently, Logan kept on looking around. The strong scent of blood made him nearly feel sick, especially as he saw a great amount of it on the ground and walls. Stopping, his eyes caught the sight of destroyed shelves and tables. He kneeled down, while his ears concentrated on the slightest noises in his surrounding. Cautiously, he pulled the wood aside and gasped as he saw white and bloody hair underneath is.

Speeding up, he could finally grab underneath her shoulders and pulled her out of the wreckage. Laying her gently down, he took his glove off and touched her throat briefly. "Storm?" Logan asked and pulled the glove on again. Touching her face gently, which was covered with blood, bruises and cuts he had to growl. If he would find this bastard he would finish him once and for all. Hearing the growl, the woman jumped all of a sudden in panic and screamed, as he grabbed her to prevent her from getting hurt. "No!"

"'Ro, it's me!", Logan tried to say soothingly. "It's me! You're safe!" Stopping to fight him, she looked at him with widened eyes and he could tell that her mind had problems to realize the truth. He stroked her cheek gently. "It's me…" Suddenly her eyes changed and she began to sob heavily. He took her into his arms. "It's okay. I'll protect you." Storm clung to him while her sobs became even more desperate. Her body was despite all the bruises and open wounds completely numb. She closed her eyes tightly as the memories returned to her. Feeling her quaking with fear, Logan's hate became even stronger. "What did he do to ya?" he asked her trough gritted teeth and cupped her face, but she only shook her head and cried even heavier. Looking down on her torn uniform it became obvious to him what she must have endured under Sabretooth rage. Hearing the cracking of his headset, he was glad that someone interrupted him. Otherwise he would have destroyed this place a bit more. "Yeah?" he asked and held Storm tight.

"It's me. Did you find Hank?"

He sighed. "No, I found Storm and bring her back. She needs medical attention." Pulling the still quaking woman up, he made his way back, while she buried her face on his neck. Mentally he told Jean the rest of his thoughts; including what he thought Sabretooth had done to her. "Is something wrong?"

"If you see Bobby, bring him back!" he heard Jean say and could feel her tension. Immediately he felt scared. "Why? Is something wrong with Rogue?"

"She's in labour."

"What!" he asked her shocked and stopped abruptly on the spot. This was just perfect. "Can't you girls choose a better situation or time than this, damn it!" He continued to walk down the corridor as fast as he could without hurting Storm too much. "I'll be right there!" Walking up the stairs, he realized that the emergency exit was sealed. He had to go back through the hatch. Growling he made Storm look up in shock since she thought something was wrong. "Sorry," he excused and stopped under the hatch. "Look, that's the only way. The exit is sealed. Can you walk?" She shook her head and he sighed. "Okay, then get on my back and hold on tight." Helping her he waited until she took hold of his chest. "Ready? I have to jump."

"Yeah," Storm replied barely audible and closed her eyes as he jumped up and grabbed the edge. Groaning under both of there weights, he pulled himself up.

XXX

"Run! Come on, quickly!" Shadowcat yelled and pulled a limping Jubilee with her. "Don't look into his eyes, Jubes!"

"I can't anymore," the other girl cried and bit her lip while tears ran down her face.

"We're not giving up! So run!" Dragging her, Shadowcat kept her eyes on the mansion. "We're there soon!"

Shrieking, Jubilee suddenly landed on the ground as her leg failed. Yelling in pain, she heard the loud crack of her bones in it. The other girl, who had also fallen because of her, turned her head heavily breathing. She saw the two mutants approaching. "Come on!" she screamed as she saw how Spiral raised her six arms, one holding an axe, another one a large sword. "Jubes, get up! Get up!" Shadowcat grabbed her roughly, ignoring her friend's painful screams and tried to pull her off the ground. Seeing Equilibrius eyes getting into hypnotic mode again, she shielded hers from him. "Do it, damn it!" Finally managing to move her at least a bit, her friend fell again. She realized that she had no other choice but fight. Panting, she looked for a weapon to help her, but there was none. She remembered Logan teaching them armed combat, but what should she do without any weapon? "Jubes, attack them! Aim for her hand with the sword and keep this other guy busy!"

Sobbing, Jubilee looked up and followed her gaze. "They are too strong! Are you crazy!"

"We can't do much else can we?" Shadowcat shot back. "Now do it or they'll kill us!"

Jubilee saw the two mutants jumping at them accompanied with a shrill scream. Closing her eyes to prevent being hypnotized by Equilibrius, she screamed and shot as much plasma out of her hands as possible. Hitting his eyes, the mutant let out a yell. "Her hands! Aim at her hands quickly!" Shadowcat screamed since Spiral kept on attacking her. Raising up as good as she could, Jubilee fired at the white haired woman, but missed each time.

"She's too quick!" the girl cried in despair and fired at Equilibrius instead as he nearly fell on her. With another attack he ran off stumbling, holding his burned eyes.

"Jubilee!" Shadowcat screamed again and ducked, just to yell in the next second as the sword tore her uniform open on her waist. "Help me!"

"You're finished girl!" Spiral hissed and swung her sword once more.

"No!" Jubilee shrieked and wanted to fire as her enemy suddenly froze.

"Get her away!" Karma said. "I can't control her mind much longer…"

Nodding, Shadowcat walked over to her friend, gritting her teeth in pain. "I'm sorry," Jubilee said and took the hand she offered her. Biting her lips, she tried to keep up with her friend's speed.

"What about you?" Shadowcat asked Karma through her headset.

"Magma will help me, don't worry!" Not able to possess Spiral's mind any longer, she let go of her adversary.

"You gonna pay, bitch!" Spiral hissed and came closer. "I'll kill you for that!"

"No, you won't!" Hot heat burned two arms as Magma suddenly stepped closer. "Wildchild is knocked out. I got some help from Angel."

Karma nodded. "I'll try, but I doubt I have much power left…"

"We'll do!" Nodding at each other, the girls got into position.

XXX

Looking up, Jean suddenly jumped as the hatch moved. Relieved she saw Logan coming through it and watched him holding his arms up. Gasping she covered her mouth with her hand as she saw Storm falling into his arms. Pulling her up, he carried her over to the medical room and laid her gently down. Glancing briefly at Rogue he laid Jean a hand on her shoulder. "Take care of her, I'll get Beast." Only nodding as an answer, she looked down on Storm, who was biting her lip in pain.

"What did he do to you…?" she only gasped and held back her tears.

Logan jumped to the ground on the other side of the hatch once more. Sniffing, he picked up the scent once again and ran down the corridors at full speed, following it. He only hoped that he wasn't too late and his friend was still alive. Stopping in the main hall, he turned his head towards the gym. He could still hear fighting noises out of it, so he was lucky as it seemed. Kicking the door open, Logan extracted his claws and looked briefly at the scenery. It only took him one second to decide what to do next as he saw a huge, muscular man with long black hair jumping at Beast with a samurai katana. Seeing red as his rage took over, Wolverine growled and ran at the man. Hearing the noise behind him, Vargas turned around and barely evaded the razor sharp adamantium claws of his adversary. Taking position in front of Beast, who lay bleeding and badly wounded on the ground, Wolverine tensed his muscles and growled at his enemy menacingly.

"You must be Wolverine," Vargas noticed smirking and laughed. "What do you want with those little claws of yours, eh?"

Looking at the long sword of his adversary, Wolverine realized that he had a far wider range than he had with his claws. Snarling, he glanced briefly at Beast who met his black eyes. "Got this…from your room…," the blue mutant panted and held up a black samurai sword with shaking hands. Retracting his claws, Logan recognized his katana of which he still didn't know why he had bought it. Something about the sword had caught his attention. Something which he couldn't even explain… He'd practiced with it and found out that he somehow knew exactly how to handle it. Taking the sword out of Beast's hands, he pulled it out of the sheath and glanced at the shining metal.

"Oh, you think you can handle it?" Vargas mocked and raised his. Logan only gave him a cold look and took position. "As I can see, you know how to begin," his adversary noticed teasingly and took the same position. "Let's see how long you can survive…"

Beast swallowed hard as he saw Vargas running at Logan with full speed. Gasping, he watched as his friend didn't move first. In the last second, he rolled aside and slashed his enemy's uniform open in one large cut. Laughing, Vargas got rid of the upper part of it and threw it to the ground; tensing his well trained muscles underneath it. "Good," he snapped. "Now, let's begin!"

Holding the sword next to his head, Logan narrowed his eyes and tensed his muscles, too. No matter what this guy planned, he was ready. Watching Vargas running at him again, he waited for him to come close enough. With one good hit he could end this battle early. Tighten the grip around the sword, he hold his breath and watched him jumping off the ground. This time, Logan didn't wait and also jumped to meet him. Swinging his sword and aiming at his enemy's head, he was suddenly kicked to the ground. Growling, Logan immediately got up again. If his adversary wanted to play this game, he could have it. Lowering the sword to the ground, he ran at him.

Beast watched how Logan evaded another attack easily, jumped and spun in mid air with full agility; kicking Vargas against the head, while he attacked him with the sword in the next second. Panting, he was stunned to see his friend fighting. He had never thought that Logan could actually fight like that. Holding his breath, every time the swords crashed against each other, he saw both men spinning around and stopping abruptly. Both gave each other cold and threatening stares as the sword of Vargas touched Logan's neck and vice versa. It was a draw…

"Where did you learn that?" Vargas hissed since he was used to be the best in armed and unarmed combats. He knew everything about it, could handle any weapon and any enemy. Logan only smirked at him, hunkered down and spun quickly, using his right leg to keep him off balance. Jumping at him with his sword raised he was about to finish his enemy, as Vargas rolled aside. Growling, Logan only hit the ground. Hearing his adversary moving, he quickly turned and blocked while he began to twist Varga's arm in one move. Not being fast enough, the Brotherhood fighter yelled aloud, as Logan managed to dislocate and break his arm in a single smooth move. Furiously slashing at him with the other one, he left a large wound on Logan's chest in return. Beast gasped in shock and wanted to help, but saw that his friend was smirking. Vargas's looked at the chest in shock as the wound disappeared; leaving only the gap in the uniform and a small trace of blood. Screaming in rage, he threw himself against the X-Man. Lowering his sword, Logan made a side step and grabbed the other arm. Turning around his own axis quickly, he sent his adversary with a spun to the ground and pinned him to it with the sword. "Beat!" he hissed and knocked him out. Panting in exhaustion, he wiped the sweat off his forehead and turned towards Beast.

"How…," the blue mutant began but had to cough heavily. Logan kneeled down next to him and took a short look at the wounds. He had to get him back quickly. Suddenly, Hank's eyes widened. "Watch out!"

Grabbing the sword, Logan spun around and stabbed Vargas right through the heart, while the sword of his adversary went through his abdomen. Letting out a painful hiss, he dropped the dead body careless aside and kneeled down holding his deep wound. Speeding up his breathing, he waited for his healing factor to kick in. "Logan…," Beast gasped and only watched as a large amount of blood dripped to the ground. "No…"

"I'll be fine…," the X-Men said and put his sword back into the sheath. Getting up on weak knees, he handed it to Hank and began to pull him up.

"You can't…carry me…," the blue mutant stuttered weakly and tried to stop his friend, but Logan shook his head. "As I said, I'll be fine. And we have no time…" Limping, he began to return to the hiding place, telling Jean mentally to open the door for him.

XXX

"You really should go back to school, you loser!" Pyro sneered and pushed his attacks even more to their limits; covering his arch nemesis in a fireball. Iceman pushed his powers, too, trying to cover himself in an iceshield which could protect him against the heat. He'd completely lost any feeling for time, since his adversary had immediately attacked him as soon as their eyes had met. Changing into his iceform, he cooled his heated body down. He really had to do something and quickly… "What's wrong, pal? No power left?" Pyro laughed, enjoying seeing his flames doing their job. "You're a loser man! Nothing more than that!" Suddenly his eyes widened as his red flames turned blue in the middle; the iced up head of his adversary appearing right in front of him.

"And you're an idiot who'll never learn!" Iceman shot back and froze the arms of his opposite completely, before he knocked him out by hitting his head with his solid one. "Loser!" Looking up he saw Angel who struggled with Deathbird in the air. Raising his hands, he aimed for her wings before shooting his icebeam at her.

"Thanks!" Angel said aloud and landed next to him, while Deathbird crashed to the ground. "What are you waiting for? Go!"

Confused, Iceman stared at his teammate. "Where to!"

"Haven't you heard Mrs. Grey's call?" His opposite asked him surprised.

"No," Iceman shook his head. "My headset burned to ashes during the fight." Trying to stay calm, he suddenly felt his heart racing. "What did she say?"

Angel shrugged. "Only that the next one of us should tell you to come to the hiding place immediately…"

It hit him all of a sudden. He knew instantly what was wrong. "Thanks!" he only said and ran off, while Angel heard Wolfsbane's scream, close by. Seeing her fighting against three mutants, he began to run and took off. Making a sharp turn in mid air, he grabbed her and pulled her up; leaving the cursing members of the Brotherhood behind. "Are you alright?" he asked her worriedly and held her tight, while she changed into her normal form again.

"Yeah, only a few scratches and bruises," she replied and took a deep breath. "Thanks for helping me out!"

Angel smiled down on her. "No problem." Turning in the air once more, he aimed for the right roof of the mansion.

XXX

Closing the door behind them, Jean followed Logan once again into the medical room and watched him laying Hank down on a bed. Heavily breathing and sweating in exhaustion, Logan sat down on a chair and looked up at her; hearing Rogue's groans from the other side of the room. "How is she?"

"Fine so far," Jean replied while taking care of Hank's heavy wounds. "Her girl really wanted to do it quickly."

"Do you need help?" he asked her and got up after his healing factor had finally finished his job. All of a sudden the students screamed and he turned quickly. Extracting his claws, he was about to storm into the other room as Iceman entered panting. "Jesus, kid!" Logan cursed and retracted them again.

"Where's…" Iceman stopped as he heard her and quickly ran over to his girlfriend.

"Do you've heard anything from Charles?" Jean asked all of a sudden and gave him a worried look as he shook his head, while checking on Storm. "I can't reach him either… Not even mentally… Something's wrong!"

Hearing another call, Logan snorted and turned. "Gotta go. I'll check on Chuck after saving Scooterboy." He smirked at her reassuringly before making his way to the hatch again. Jean heard him saying some calming word to the students, before she felt how his presence slowly became more and more distant. She took more bandages into her hands after she was done cleaning Hank's wounds. Worriedly she looked at him, seeing from the corner of her eye that Storm was also staring at him, while crying silently. Suddenly, Beast opened his eyes a bit. "The boy's good…you know…"

Jean smiled slightly. "Yeah, I know."

"Make sure…you keep him," he replied barely audible, before he closed his eyes again.

"I will," she said absently, suddenly feeling a thick lump in her throat as her heart kicked into high gear.

XXX

On the other side, Logan made his way down the corridor as he suddenly stopped and sniffed. Recognizing the scent, he didn't turn his head as he felt a presence right behind him.

"I took care of three of them," a familiar voice said. "They don't know yet."

"Good," he replied and looked to the left. "Do me a favor and check on Chuck in Cerebro."

"I will!" the female voice replied and he heard her running off, before he kept on running down into his direction. He really wanted to see Magneto's face when he found out… Smirking, he climbed up the small stairs to the roof. Reaching it heavily breathing, he began to look for Scott. "Cyke?" He could smell him, but there was no living sign of his teammate left. Suddenly, he heard a scratching noise on the far left edge of the roof. Running towards it quickly, Logan finally found him. Scott desperately tried to hold onto the edge with one arm, but was unable to pull himself up because of an injury on the other.

"Damn…," Logan cursed and kneeled down. "What are ya doin' ya drama queen?" Holding onto a more or less stable window-sill and tried to get a hold of Cyclops' hand.

"Hurry!", the other man cried and panted. "I can't hold myself much longer…"

Logan finally extracted his claws on one hand and buried them deep into the roof to keep himself from falling, before he bent down a bit more. Grabbing his teammate's hand, he pulled him up.

Still panting in exhaustion, Cyclops kneeled on the ground. "Thanks…"

"How did ya manage that?" Logan asked him and cocked an eyebrow, since he couldn't see the body of any other mutant laying around. "Ya wanna top the Furball's entrance? Sorry to disappoint ya, but were even behind 'Ro, bub!"

Cyclops, having no idea what Logan was talking about, got slowly up and held his shoulder. "Some force field knocked me back after I blasted this damn white haired mutant."

Taking notice of the wound, Logan nodded towards the exit. "Ya should go down and let Moira or Jeannie check on it."

"I'm fine!" his opposite waved off and saw his teammate stiffen all of a sudden.

"Get off the roof!" Logan hissed through clenched teeth.

"What!" Cyclops asked him in return, not knowing what had gotten into his leader. He saw how he looked at him strangely.

"Get away from here, damn it!" Logan yelled at him and gritted his teeth, when his opposite finally noticed that his teammate obviously couldn't more anymore.

"Good evening, my friends!"

Turning around, Cyclops immediately had his hand on his visor as he saw a large shadow appearing behind them. "Damn…"

Logan breathed heavily and grimaced in pain, while he kept his eyes on his opposite; cursing within that the boy didn't listen to him. "Damn it, Cyke," he yelled once more and narrowed his eyes menacingly. "Don't care about me! Just go!"

"I'm not leaving you here alone, Logan!" Cyclops protested and kept his eyes on Magneto who watched the scenery amused.

"Stop getting all soft on me, bub. Piss off and help the others!"

"You should listen to him, you know…," Magneto said smiling widely. He knew this was going to be fun to watch. Even if this scene was a bit different than he had expected it to be.

Cyclops looked to and fro the two men, not knowing what to do. He never left a teammate in a dangerous situation behind…and he would definitely not start with it today.

"You won't be of any use if ya get hurt," Logan tried once more to talk some sense into him. "Piss off, damn it! That's an order!"

Panting, the other X-Man still wasn't sure what to do. He knew Logan was right, knew he was the leader and that he had to obey. Finally, Cyclops nodded and ran towards the door.

"It won't safe him anyway," Magneto commented the action of the X-Man and made Logan turn to him, before he raised him into the air. He couldn't believe that this mutant was supposed to be the most dangerous mutant…

Logan gritted his teeth in fury. "Shut up, ya bastard!"

Laughing slightly, the master of magnetism smirked devilishly. "I doubt I'll be the one who shuts up soon… I've made plans especially for you, my friend!"

Cyclops stopped abruptly when he heard Logan's yell. His eyes widened in shock as he saw how Magneto threw his comrade high into the air and into the wood. Feeling his strong beating heart in his chest, he knew he had to get help. And that quickly…"

XXX

Back in the hiding place, Jean and Moira sat on the bed in the main room tiredly. This day couldn't get worse, as they thought. They had expected much work as the two doctors within this mansion, but not that much. Especially because they couldn't stop their emotions while treading their friends… One major mistake of them since every doctor should be able to deal with it. Turning their heads, they smiled at Iceman and Rogue who looked down on their little daughter, which was finally born. Heaving a deep breath, Jean turned her attention to her twins, which, and she thanked God for it, were still sleeping. Up to now, they hadn't cried a lot and if then only because of hunger or their want to have a new diaper. Still, she felt worried. Not only because of the others. She had a gut feeling that something was about to happen. She only felt this strong fear when her inner alarm set off and the last time it did, she'd been in a coma for four weeks…

"What's wrong?" Moira asked her calmly, watching some students sleeping on the ground.

Jean waved off. "Nothing. I'm just worried…" She smiled at her slightly, hoping to convince her as suddenly, a loud explosion echoed on the opposite site of the door. Jumping up and hearing the students scream in fear, the women stared at the door in shock.

"What was that?" Moira asked frightened and started at the red heat.

"I don't know…," Jean replied while her emotions were running wild. She heard another loud noise as all of a sudden the door was destroyed. Backing off, she looked at three Brotherhood mutants who were smiling at them. "Get into the other room!" she yelled without taking her eyes of their guests.

"Not gonna happen!" Shadow King replied and made everyone freeze on the spot, while Unus created a strong force field around himself and his two comrades.

Jean began to pant in fear. She knew she had to fight. She was the only one left who could do a lot of damage, but still she backed off; not feeling ready to do it. She could hear Phoenix voice within her, yelling at her to take them out, but she, the human part of her, couldn't…

"So… That's the almighty Phoenix, huh?" Emma Frost asked and smirked while stepping forward. "Let's see how powerful you really are!"

Screaming, Jean dropped to the ground and held her head agony. She could feel both, Shadow King's and Emma's presence within her head, felt them playing with her thoughts and emotions. She heard the students scream from very far away, too far away already…

Moira watched the scenery with widened eyes. Quivering in fear she backed off, while Iceman stepped at her side, ready to fight and protect the others. Still, he too was scared to death. He knew what would happen if the adult mutant would lose it… Gasping in surprise he dropped to the ground as the room began to shake violently. With widen eyes he looked at Rogue who held their crying baby tight.

"No!" Jean yelled and closed her eyes tightly while she groaned in pain. "Stay out of my head!" Seeing the dark pictures within her, the nightmares the two telepath made her endure, she felt her counterpart rising; laughing at her incompetence and weakness. Again she cried in pain and felt her barriers being torn apart one after the next. She was completely overwhelmed by her emotions, fears and thoughts; tried desperately to recall what Logan had taught her, tried to hold onto him but every attempt seemed to be useless. Emma smiled devilishly and pushed her powers even more. She had to admit that she was disappointed. Hearing about the Phoenix was her reason to join the Brotherhood. She wanted someone who was an equal to her, wanted to use her powers to its limits. But know she only stared at this woman who cried in pain and didn't even try to fight. Shadow King went through the whole mind of his adversary. Catching pictures and memories everywhere, he had fun to mess with this head. Every good memory and happy moment was changed into a bad one; every unhappy memory was only made worse. He smirked when he had finally found the anchor of his enemy, the only one she could hold onto. Laughing he picked her memory from the battle on Alcatraz, but instead letting her see how Logan killed her, he changed it into making her endure how she destroyed him too. "No!" Jean screamed and tightened the grip on her head while she cried heavily. She saw her return, saw how her friends turned away from her; heard them talking about her in the rudest ways, saw Logan telling her how much he hated her… She couldn't endure this anymore, especially not with Dark Phoenix laughing at her in joy about her misery.

Moira shrieked as she suddenly saw how the red hair of the woman in front of her changed color and length. "No…"

Enjoying it even more, Emma heard Jean beginning to breathe heavily while her body shook violently. "I thought she's so powerful…," she only commented it feeling bored. This was too easy… Nevertheless, if she could make use of her powers, she thought, she could also have a bit more fun. Raising both hands, she got hold of the dark side within this mutant and smiled as she felt it responding to her. Maybe, she would still get her fight… Watching, she made the fiery red head rose to her knees. Hearing Jean's heavy pants, she saw surprised how the tearful green eyes of her opposite suddenly turned pitch black. Shadow King noticed it too. He could feel the darkness rising within this woman and enjoyed it even the more as her face left all human features behind when her face became veined.

"Jean!" Moira cried aloud since she also noticed the changes. She could feel how the woman in front of her began to radiate a strong aura of pure destruction and rage. She had to do something. Helplessly, she looked at Iceman and Rogue who watched the scenery with scared expression on their faces. "Fight her! Please!" she added before she began to look around. Seeing the emergency headset, Logan had left for them. Moira jumped forward and grabbed it quickly. "Logan? Lease, if you can hear me come down quickly! Jean is…"

With one blow, Shadow King took her out before she could finish her sentence. Rogue swallowed hard and began to quiver in fear. It just couldn't be. She just had her daughter… From the corner of her eye, she saw how Storm and Hank had dropped to their knees at the other door; also watching the whole scenery in shock.

Jean gritted her teeth and closed her eyes tightly in pain. Still not completely lost, she began to fight against the darkness which was about to swallow her. Dark Phoenix began to rage within her, scream at her to give up and let her take over, but she couldn't let this happen. Desperately trying to hold onto the last good memory she had, she soon saw this one also turned into a nightmare by Shadow King.

"Will you be fine here without me?" Emma asked the beast next to her who still smiled devilishly and visibly was enjoying the whole thing.

"Of course! She's no match to me," he replied in his daemonic voice.

With one last look on the woman, Emma turned around while she heard her teammate laugh in a dark low voice. She had enough of those kid's games. She needed a real adversary who was a match to her…

"Nice thoughts, aren't they?" Shadow King asked aloud and covered her even more in his dark aura. Jean shook her head and a silent scream left her mouth in agony. "You'll be my new toy!" he added hissing. "It's so much fun to mess with your head!"

The room began to shake even more violently as suddenly the lamps began to explode and objects began to float upwards. Panting, Rogue watched how Jean spread her arms wide, her body upright while she was still on her knees. Immediately, the girl knew that the woman had lost the fight as the wall was destroyed in one blow. Not thinking twice, Iceman pulled her and his kid tight.

"Good girl! Give in to my precious darkness!" Shadow King enjoyed watching the whole scenery. He didn't care about the screaming and crying kids or that others were watching. But he loved to see this red head losing it and enjoyed having power over others. A voice within Jean began to scream aloud; still her skin was veined and dark. Laughing, her adversary kept on attacking her, wanted to push her even further just to see what might happened then, while Unus shielded them by his force field. Next to them water began to float upwards, too, while one after the next object just vanished. Frowning, the other X-Men watched as Dark Phoenix's body suddenly began to shake heavily again. Heavily breathing, she opened her eyes all of a sudden; a strong fiery corona covering them. Slowly, she got up and gritted her teeth in fury. Surprised the others heard Shadow King and Unus yelling in pain, still the beast fought back and strengthened his attacks even more. He wouldn't give up on her…never… If he couldn't break her, he still had some other toys to play. Laughing aloud, his powers now aimed for the children and the other X-Men who watched in shock as beams like lightning shot at them. Their shock was immediately replaced by surprise, when an invisible force shielded them.

Blinking, Moira slowly shook her head and looked up, just to see directly into a huge firebird which began to rise right over Dark Phoenix who spread her arms. Shrieking the bird attacked the enemies, while its master created a force field of her own. Smirking back at Unus who had cocked an eyebrow at her in surprise, she easily blocked every attack they came up with. Hearing Shadow King and Unus screaming again in pain, their bodies suddenly began to burn heavily while their skin was boiling.

"No! You're not gonna beat me!" Shadow King screamed in anger and his yellow eyes began to glow, just to see that his opposites did the same. Using all his power he began to attack the firebird with his telepathy, knowing that if he could possess it, he would win. But soon he realized that the giant bird was way stronger and broke through his force field easily. Shrieking, the bird swallowed them, while its master crossed her arms in front of her chest and raised her head a bit. The X-Men gasped in astonishment at her sudden beauty and pride. Stopping time for a brief moment, Phoenix spread her arms abruptly and made Shadow King's and Unus' bodies explode with a loud noise. Immediately, the force field shattered to pieces and things dropped to the ground, while Jean fell on her knees heavily breathing. Still fighting against the upcoming power of Dark Phoenix, who made use of her momentary weakness, she began to shake all over and wrapped her arms around herself. Panting, she closed her eyes tightly and gritted her teeth.

Cautiously, Moira got up from the ground, checking if anyone was hurt briefly, she came closer. "Jean?" she asked carefully, still afraid that it might not be her friend on front of her.

Raising a hand, the red head told her to stop. She concentrated hard on locking her counter part into her cage again; used every trick Logan had taught her while her heart beat slowly began to slow down. Steadying her breath, she moved her head to look at her crying babies. Moira and the others immediately backed off when they saw how Jean's eyes constantly switched from pitch black to fiery red ones. Jean swallowed and concentrated even harder before she stopped blinking. Still shocked, the others saw how her opposite's skin, eyes and hair slowly returned back to normal.

"Are you alright?" Moira asked her when Jean got up from the ground.

Looking at her strangely and not being able to think straight after all those pictures and things which Shadow King had implanted into her mind, Jean heaved a deep sigh. "Yeah… I'll be in a second." Slowly, she sat down on a bed and wrapped her arms around her body again. Mentally, she tried to soothe the babies who were still crying aloud, before she closed her eyes once more.

Moira turned to the students in the meanwhile, who still clung to each other. "It's okay, children," she said calmly despite her inner turmoil. "It's over. Nothing's gonna happen to you anymore!" Unsure and frightened the students slowly let go from each other as suddenly heavy footsteps could be heard from the tunnel…

XXX

Logan slowly regained consciousness and sat up with a skull breaking headache in the middle of the wood. Feeling dizzy and disoriented, he got up staggering a bit. Shaking his head, he closed his eyes and concentrated his senses to find out where exactly in the wood he was. He neither knew how long he was unconscious, nor had he been able to keep his headset during Magneto's attack. Sniffing, he was suddenly alerted. Logan's eyes shot open in an instant and he looked around quickly. His eyes glowed in the shades of the night and he was again thankful that he could even see in the dark. He kept on searching for Sabretooth, whose scent he'd caught immediately. If he found this bastard he would make him pay for hurting Storm, that was for sure. Suddenly, he heard wood cracking close by. Extracting his claws, he got ready for an attack of his arch nemesis as he suddenly frowned in confusion. His nose had just picked up four other scents. Swallowing, his heart rate didn't kick into high gear because of his discovery or situation. One scent of the fours new ones somehow, and he couldn't tell why, triggered a strong fear within him, which told him to run immediately. Panting, he heard more wood cracking and suddenly noticed Sabretooth shining wild eyes, which were reflected by the moonlight, in front of him. It didn't take long and Logan also saw the four other mutants appearing from different sides. He moved in a circle panting, as his eyes caught the sight of a huge muscled mutant, whose skin, except the face, was covered in a shiny silver metal. Logan instantly knew that it was adamantium. The sight of this mutant alone unusually scared the X-Men to death and made him back off. Still, he couldn't tell why he felt like this. He heard Sabretooth growling threatening when Logan's eyes met two others wild ones, which really screamed for bloodlust. He looked at the huge white beastlike mutant, whose fangs were wet of salvia. Logan knew this one was out for blood, his blood… Realizing what Magneto meant with _plans_ he'd made for him, he became aware that he had no other choice but run, as the beast's eyes suddenly glowed and it drew itself up to its full height.

"Wen-di-go!" it suddenly roared aloud and Logan could bet that this could still be heard at the mansion.

"Yeah, nice to meet ya to!" Logan hissed and turned around running away as fast as he could without thinking twice about it. Hearing the loud growls of the other mutants behind him as his chasers began to follow him, his mind kept on working on a strategy.

Logan ran through the thicket heavily breathing and kept on pushing every plant or branched out of his way without slowing his speed down. Stopping abruptly, he looked around quickly, trying to figure out where he actually was. He had no idea how far Magneto had threw him into the wood, nor if Sabretooth or someone else had carried him deeper into it while he was knocked out. Hearing a growl close by, Logan looked up and jumped on the tree; using his claws to climb up. When he reached a branch high above the ground, he hid himself between the leaves and tried to keep his breath as flat as possible; still his heart hammered against his chest and the strong fear raged within him. Looking down, he could see Wendigo who was sniffing and obviously tried to pick up his scent.

"Wen-di-go!" the white beast roared once more and Logan had to close his eyes when his ears began to vibrate violently. Holding his breath, he hoped that the mutant or whatever this thing was couldn't track him as it suddenly looked up, right into his eyes. "Damn!"

Roaring, Wendigo jumped at the tree and came after him, while Logan looked for an escape and scanned the area quickly. All of a sudden the beast appeared right in front of him growling. Slashing at him, Wendigo grabbed his adversary and threw him to the ground. Crashing hard onto it, Logan feels dizzy first, but shook his head and extracted his claws quickly again. Barely managing to evade Wendigos's first attack, he slashed once more at the beast; growling at him threatening, while Wendigo bared his fangs. Making sidesteps and not breaking eye contact, the X-Man tensed his muscles when the white beast jumped at him with his sharp claws. Logan reacted instantly. Burying his claws deep within its body, he heard Wendigo roaring once, before the beast countered and sent him backwards. Hitting a tree hard, Logan looked up and cocked an eyebrow. "Great…," he cursed as he saw how Wendigo's wounds began to heal rapidly. Jumping to his feet, he ran at the beast screaming and threw himself at it. Claws met claws merciless, but Wendigo was stronger and threw his adversary several times to the ground. The X-Men suffered more injuries from the beast's attacks than he could actually cause on his own. Panting, Logan tried to get up quickly and yelled all of a sudden, as sharp claws went deep into body while fangs bit into his side. Clenching his teeth in pain, he screamed once more as he was lifted up. Blood dripped from the wounds, causing Wedingo's white fur to redden as he howled. Growling, he threw Logan once more to the ground and buried him underneath himself. The beast wanted to finish this fight and bare his fangs to kill his adversary. Logan on the contrary began to see red as his beast took over. Letting out a primal scream, he furiously began to bury his claws into Wendigo's abdomen and sliced the beast open, spilling its blood on the ground and uniform. The beast immediately let go off him and backed off to heal his wound. Wolverine's black eyes shined wild as he caught the sight of the beating heart within its chest. In blind rage he roars loud and threw himself at the beast once more. Evading its attacks, he buried his claws into the heart of his enemy, while Wendigo grabbed him and bit into Wolverine's neck and tore his vitals open with his own sharp claws. Screaming in pain, Wolverine tried to get rid off the white beast, feeling his blood leaving his body too fast. Managing to free himself, he accidentally tore the heart out of the chest as he pulled his arms away; attempting to slash the beast once more. Satisfied he saw how Wendigo dropped dead to the ground.

Falling to his own knees, Logan gained control again. Looking down, while pressing his hands on his heavy wound, he watched his blood flowing down the torn uniform. He rolled on his back and began to pant waiting for his healing factor to speed up. Suddenly, Logan caught Sabretooth's scent close by and looked up, just to see how his arch nemesis was already pouncing on him…

XXX

Hearing the footsteps approaching, Iceman got ready to attack this time. "It's okay," Jean said and looked at him. "It's only Scott!"

It didn't take long and the former leader of the X-Men appeared. Stopping abruptly when he saw the mess which had been the hiding place before, he stared at the others. "What happened here?" he asked shocked and couldn't take his eyes from the wreckage. He totally forgot why he had actually come down.

Moira walked over to him after helping Storm and Beast to their beds again. "We were attacked."

"Are you okay?" Cyclops asked quickly. "Is someone hurt?" Looking around worriedly, he took notice of every student until he noticed Jean's look. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah…," she replied calmly and saw him kneeling down in front of her. He was clearly scared.

"What happened?"

She sighed, still shaking slightly. "The mutants attacked us…two telepaths."

He frowned. "Where are they now?" he asked confused since he neither had met someone, nor could he see anyone being tied up.

Ashamed she looked down on her hands. "I killed two of them…," she admitted in a whisper. Being shocked first, Cyclops finally embraced her tightly. "You had no other choice, Jean."

"I know," she nodded before she looked at him closely. "You're hurt…"

He waved off. "Nothing to worry about."

Moira turned around to him, holding some bandages and antiseptic in her hands for his wounds. "Have you seen Logan?"

"Yeah, he saved me up there. But Magneto threw him into the woods. I actually came here for help…" Looking at his wounded comrades he knew that he should have tried to find someone else. Suddenly, he noticed the look Jean gave him. Her fear and concern was clearly mirrored on her face.

"I called him for help," Moira explained while treating his shoulder. "But he didn't respond."

"Maybe his headset's broken," Cyclops replied not being able to broke eye contact with Jean. He knew she was replaying the scene in his head. She wanted to know what happened. "Or he's unconscious." Suddenly, Jean stared into emptiness for a brief moment before she jumped up. "What's wrong? Where are ya going?" He asked her and held her back.

"Something's wrong!" She told him with widened eyes.

"He's fine Jean! You know he can handle himself…"

She pushed him slightly away and shook her head. "No! You don't understand!" she told him. "He's not responding to me, too… I can't reach him mentally." Making her way to the door again, Cyclops jumped up not caring that Moira still wasn't finished treating him.

"Wait! I'm coming with you!"

Jean turned around and shook her head. "You have to protect the children!"

Thinking it through for a moment, he finally nodded. "Watch your back!" he told her worriedly. "And let us know if you need help!"

Nodding, she began to run down the tunnel as fast as she could; letting her fear lead her.

Looking at the other, while he ignored Moira's curses as she finally managed to close the bandage on his shoulder, he noticed Hank on one bed. Glancing at the half destroyed wall, he walked over to him. "How is he?"

"Logan brought him. He was pretty badly injured. By a sword or something," Moira explained with a worried look. "I still couldn't manage to stop the bleeding completely…"

Bending over his teammate, Hank suddenly opened his eyes. "Hey! How're doing?"

The blue mutant coughed heavily and grimaced in pain. "Thanks to Logan…still alive…"

"What happened?"

"Such a crazy samurai wannabe attacked me…," he explained while his eyes closed slowly again. "You should have seen Logan…. He's the real samurai here…" Scott patted his shoulder gently, not knowing what the samurai stuff was about, before his eyes caught Storm. Immediately he gasped as he saw her. "What happened to her!" he asked Moira in shock and looked over all the cuts and bruises.

The woman sighed. "Logan said Sabretooth attacked her. He was very brutal to her," she explained calmly, being glad that Storm finally slept. "She also has some internal injuries…"

"Internal injuries?" he asked in return since he had noticed the strange undertone of her. Meeting her eyes it hit him. "I hope he kills him before I have to do it…," he hissed and clenched his fists in anger. Seeing Jubilee next he nodded towards the girl who was accompanied by Kitty. "What about them?"

"Jubilees leg is broken. Kitty has a cut on her waist, but it isn't that bad." Shaking her head she looked at him. "This is worse than I have ever imagined it, Scott. We don't even know how the others are. No one has heard anything from Peter. And now Logan…"

He nodded his head and returned to the other room with her. "I know." Suddenly a baby began to cry heavily and he turned around.

"What does she want?" Rogue asked panicky and looked at Moira helplessly.

Smiling Moira walked over to the bags of Logan and Jean. "Probably something to eat. The twins could also be fed by now." She reached over a prepared bottle Isabella, before she handed Iceman another one, who stared at her in confusion. "Come on. Take Jack into your arms and give him something to eat."

"I… don't know how," the young man replied and looked down on the boy who looked back at him. He knew what Logan would do to him if his son only had the tiniest scratch.

"I'll show you," the woman said and laid the boy into his arms, before taking his hand and waiting for the boy to start sucking on the bottle. "See? That was all." She bent down and took Lily into her arms, noticing Scott's odd look he gave Rogue from the side. "What? Have you never seen a mother feeding her child?"

"When did this happen!" he asked her shocked and still stared at the young woman who looked down on her daughter lovingly.

"Shortly after we arrived here," Moira answered. "You should have seen her outburst when I wanted her to touch her daughter. She hadn't even realized that the child was already laying on her abdomen without anything happening to her."

"I said I was sorry!" Rogue replied blushing. "But I was scared to touch her…"

"I know, girl," the woman said reassuringly. "But it's your daughter. She's part of you and your mutation. So I was convinced that you could touch her."

Scott let out a hiss and shoo his head in disbelief. "You girl really have a knack for the right time and place," he noticed and smiled at Rogue. "Congrats!" She only shrugged playfully before her attention was on her daughter again.

Scott looked up in confusion, as Colossus suddenly appeared in front of him, just to gasp in the next moment when he noticed whose body laid in his arms. "Oh my God!" With two steps he was at his side and looked down on the Professor. "What happened to him?"

"Scott, hold her!" Moira demanded and handed over the girl to the perplex man. "Just keep on feeding her. Follow me!" Leading the way, she pointed towards a bed and Peter laid the Professor's body down.

"I found him in Cerebro. Someone knocked him out," he explained and looked at the woman in front of him.

Moira took a small torch into her hands and controlled Charles' eyes with it. "It's probably only a head injury. Was the door to Cerebro open?"

"Yes."

"They could have killed him," she cursed and looked for any other wounds. "Finally we know why we haven't heard anything from him…"

Suddenly Scott's look changed and he turned to Peter with a suspicious look on his face. "What were you doing down there? The last time I saw you Juggernaut ran at you on full speed."

Peter shrugged. "Logan told me to go and look for the Professor." He turned and wanted to leave again.

"Wait!" Scott said harshly and made Moira, Bobby and Rogue look up in surprise. "How come you're bleeding? The Professor hasn't got any open wounds on him and as far as I know…you _can't_ bleed!" he said menacingly, sensing that something was wrong. "Who are you!" Turning around, he saw Peter's eyes turning yellow before his body became blue. "You!" Scott hissed and was about to attack, as he took notice of the girl in his hands. "What is this, huh?" he asked her angrily instead. Mystique narrowed her eyes, preparing herself to evade in case of an attack.

"Scott, wait!" Surprised he turned his head and stared into the tired eyes of the Professor. "She's not the enemy!"

"What!" the man asked in return. "Sorry, no offence, but this is Mystique over there. Magneto's precious lapdog." The woman gritted her teeth.

Charles shook his head. "She's working for us. She helped us fighting against Eric's mutants. So don't attack her!"

XXX

Cursing, Logan got up and ran, knowing that he had no chance with his vitals torn open and his healing factor still trying to fix it. Running around the trees and preparing himself to jump over a fallen one as Sabretooth suddenly cut off his escape route. Crashing against a tree, he groaned in pain. Shaking his head as the world began to spin around him while his arch nemesis grabbed his collar roughly and growled at him threatening. Enjoying to see that blood was still flowing out of the wounds on the neck and abdomen, he raised his paw and tore Logan's face open; leaving four large gaps on the face. Growling, Logan's eyes immediately blacken again as his world turned red. Slashing at his adversary in rage, he stumbled because of the blood loss. Grinning, Sabretooth made use of it and jumped at him quickly, slashing at him in return. Yelling, his opposite winded underneath the weight of his enemy when this one pinned Wolverine to the ground. Still he wasn't quick enough to evade the claws this time as they sliced through his upper body. Roaring, he grabbed the X-Men and all hell broke lose. Both mutants fought merciless with each other, leaving their marks on the body of the opposite. They were slashing, biting, punching and kicking, while their roars and growls echoed through the wood. Not suffering heavy wounds as much as Wolverine did, Sabretooth kept the upper hand and threw his enemy against the next tree, which broke in the middle. Panting, Wolverine fought against the upcoming blackness. He wanted his revenge and slicing his arch nemesis into pieces. After a low growl, he uttered a loud primal scream, which contained all his fury and rage, before he threw himself against Sabretooth once more. Blinded by his rage he completely ignored the wounds and put all his strength together when he slashed at his nemesis. Grinning, the giant mutant grabbed Wolverine's arm and dislocated it with a quick movement before he kicked him to the ground. Getting even angrier, this one tore the skin in the face of his adversary open, not feeling his own pain anymore. Stumbling, Sabretooth held his wound for a moment, not seeing that Wolverine jumped at him. Still he managed to evade and kicked him once more to the ground, hitting his enemy's head hard on the backside. Feeling the blackness coming up, the X-Men blinked and turned just to see Sabretooth claws coming closer when this one pounced on him with a loud roar and open mouth. Growling, Wolverine took notice of the bared fangs which aimed at his throat and popped his claw on the injured arm just in time when Sabretooth's fangs were about to hit him. Satisfied, he felt his claws going easily through his nemesis' jaw, before this one dropped to the ground heavily shaking in some kind of epileptic fit. Getting up, Logan's hazel eyes looked down on his arch nemesis. "That one was for 'Ro!" he hissed and leant against the next tree to allow his healing factor to catch up. He definitely needed a break soon. He couldn't go on like this without risking to be killed. But he was sure of one thing: Sabretooth healing ability had hell to do with repairing the brain damage he had just caused to him. Spitting blood to the ground, while sweat ran down his face Logan took notice of his wounds. He looked even worse than he thought. He was sure he wouldn't survive another attack without taking deadly damage. Stumbling, he began to walk towards the lights of the mansion, which he could see from where he was standing. Just as he kept himself from falling as his knees got weak, he heard another growl from behind. Turning his head as quickly as possible, he saw Bloodscream and Cyber who already had started to pounce on him…

XXX

Crossing his arms in front of his chest, Cyclops heaved a frustrated sigh. She was too long gone,…far too long. Looking around he met the eyes of the Professor who noticed his concern. "Jean is fine. She just has found Peter and is on her way back."

"Is he alright?" he asked in return and lowered his arms.

Charles expression became worried as he mentally tried to contact his student. "I doubt it. Jean has to carry him telekinetically…"

"Damn," Scott cursed and clenched his fist. "What about Angel and the others? Can you reach them, too?"

"They are fine. I am more concerned about Logan…," the Professor said with a great trace of fear in his voice.

"What about him?" Mystique asked, ignoring the looks the others gave her.

Charles shook his head. "It's impossible to read his mind, but..," he concentrated hard on his X-Man. "He's…afraid…"

"Afraid?" Cyclops asked and had to smirk. "Sure it is Logan? He doesn't even seem to know that word." Frowning, the blue mutant turned around. "Hey, you're not going anywhere!" Scott immediately hissed, but she gave him a threatening look.

"Eric wants to kill him you pathetic little boy!" she hissed in a menacing voice. "He made it once, have ya already forgotten about that?"

"He obviously doesn't have the cure, does he?" Scott shot back.

"No," she shook her head sarcastically. "But he has mutants who can kill him!"

Smirking he stepped closer. "Since when are you so concerned for him, huh? I thought he showed you the cold shoulder at Alkali Lake."

Narrowing her eyes she was about to punch him as the Professor intervened. "Stop it! Go and find him immediately!" he told them seriously. "I feel his fear growing…"

Not thinking twice, Mystique turned around, not caring if Cyclops followed her or not. Cursing, this one hurried to keep up with her…

XXX

Barely evading the attack, Logan kicked his adversary's head while hitting Bloodscream with his claw. Snorting, Cyber got up quickly and punched him hard, hearing the satisfied groan as his enemy hit the ground. Using his injured arms, Logan jumped up quickly, ignoring the sharp pain in it. He had to get away from here as fast as he could. While running, which was more limping and stumbling, he still tried to figure out why he felt so scared of this Cyber… Something about him told him to keep on running, to not letting this guy touch him. But he had no clue why he felt like that. Pulling his strength together while his healing factor demanded him to quit, he ran towards the mansion with Cyber and Bloodscream close by.

Panting heavily, he fought his way through their attacks every time they caught up with him. He only had to get inside and get help. That was all he wanted. From the corner of his eye, he saw the younger X-Men fighting with four mutants. As far as he could noticed they were doing fine. He was definitely no help for them in his condition. When he finally reached the door, he suddenly felt a heavy bump in his back and crashed right through it; hitting his head hard on the ground. Gritting his teeth in pain, Logan shook his head when blackness set in and his ears began to roar. Looking up, he noticed that he lay in the middle of the hall of the mansion. Using his healthy arm to get up, his legs suddenly failed and he fell to the ground again. Panting, he heaved two heavy breaths before trying it again; he definitely wouldn't allow his body to quit now. Shaking he stumbled a bit, as Bloodscream suddenly threw him down again, holding on to his skin tightly. Growling, Logan turned and tried to get rid off him, as suddenly Cyber pounced on him and pinned him immobile to the ground. "You're not going anywhere, pal!" Groaning, the X-Men felt an unbearable pain rushing through his body, while Bloodscream only laughed. With widened eyes, Logan saw how blood ran down his adversary's hands and realized that it was his own. Watching it really floating out of his body in a great amount, his heart kicked into high gear as his wounds began to reopen. He knew his healing factor concentrated on the blood loss, but it was useless if his wounds started to bleed heavily again. This guy would suck him dry… Tensing his muscles, he tried to get rid off the heavy mutant on top off him. Cyber could only laugh. "Told ya our plan would work," he said towards Bloodscream. "Let us wait and do the others the dirty work first. As if I were so stupid to get myself killed by this runt here." Growling, Logan stepped aside and Wolverine took over. Struggling and wriggling like a worm, his instinct of survival took over and he began to tense his muscles. "Come on, this is useless," Cyber shook his head in amusement. "But you're still the fighter I know. I must admit it!" Mentally, Wolverine began to cry for help as his attempts lead to nothing. He cursed his counterpart for being so careless and soft.

"It's your gift from Magneto," Bloodscream hissed at him, while he kept on drawing the blood and vitality from the X-Man.

"He can keep it!" Wolverine growled and his eyes blackened even more under the torture of his adversaries. Shaking his head his pants became heavier as his senses began to drift off. His healing factor was overloaded and would stop working soon to keep him alive. He had to risk it in order to regain a bit power.

"It's over soon, anyway. So stop that growling!" Bloodscream shot back and tightened his grip on him as he felt the muscles underneath his hands tensing again. This one was the first enemy who hold out to him so long. He admired such strong fighters like him. Still, even if he'd lost to that man in the past, he wouldn't lose today. This time he would take revenge. Looking at the floor and shredded uniform of his enemy, he smiled about the red liquid which covered the ground by now.

Opening his eyes rapidly, Wolverine went completely berserk and roared underneath his torturers. Surprising them with this strong outburst and the concentrated amount of power, he suddenly came up with, Bloodscream and Cyber loosen their grip only for the glimpse of a second. Meeting the black and furious eyes of the beast in front of him, Bloodscream began to change into his animal appearance, as Wolverine pounced on him quickly. Yelling, he only saw six claws rushing down on him, as the blood escaped his own throat and send him to the ground. In the next second, sparks were sent into the air, when the claws slashed against the adamantium abdomen of Cyber. "Fool!" this one only said and extracted his own small claws; a red and green liquid dripping of each hand.

Screaming, his teammate tried to keep the blood flowing from his open throat as Wolverine suddenly jumped at him and slashed him in blind rage. Overwhelmed by his survival instincts, he began to push himself to run towards the next door, which would let him to the elevators. Nevertheless, he stumbled as his legs failed. Ignoring the spinning world around him, Wolverine got up quickly again; only wanting to escape. Still, his body called its quit and he stumbled once more. His heart was pounding heavily against his chest in exhaustion; his healing factor couldn't repair the damage his body had endured during the fights. He needed a break. Regaining control again, Logan finally reached the elevator and pushed the button with trembling hands, just to turn his head quickly in the next second, while he held onto the door to prevent himself from falling. Growling, Cyber appeared and raised his hands to show him the claws. Grinning, he began to run at Logan in full speed, who had trouble to keep his balance. Narrowing his eyes, he knew he had no other choice and popped his claws, moving to meet his adversary. Both of them uttered a loud scream and jumped at each other claws first. Feeling another sharp pain in his chest and abdomen, Logan yells loudly, while his claws meet their target: Cyber's unprotected face. Falling to the ground, he landed on top of his adversary's dead body and retracted his claws, while rolling off him.

Suddenly feeling an unbearable heat within him, Logan gritted his teeth as his body began to shake violently. Groaning in pain, he barely managed to roll onto his abdomen as his pants became suddenly heavier. Turning his head, he could still see the red and green liquid which dropped from Cyber's claws through his blurred sight. He knew immediately that something was wrong. The heat slowly took over all parts of his body, dazed his senses, made the world around him spin even more as his body muscles began to feel numb. Slowly moving his arms, he tried to get to his feed, but failed. His mind wanted to shut down. Panting even heavier, he raised his head a bit, barely seeing the elevator door through his blurred vision. From his position on the ground, Logan felt his heart beating against it. Closing his eyes tightly, he suddenly retched as breathing became steadily harder. He wished Magneto would drop dead right now in this second. Hot liquid ran over his body and dropped to the ground as his healing factor, completely overloaded by now, stopped, not knowing which damage to heal first. Coughing, Logan looked up as he heard the elevator door open. While shaking even heavier, he saw a shadow approaching. Narrowing his eyes, while his senses drifted off, he couldn't make out who it was. If it was an enemy he was finished…

Stopping and wrinkling his brows, the person looked down the hallway. "Logan!" Scott suddenly gasped as he recognized his teammate and ran down towards him quickly. Looking at the mess in front of him, he briefly noticed the dead body next to his comrade, before his eyes widened. "What happened to you?" he asked shocked and kneeled down, seeing that the torn uniform was completely soaked with blood. "Who did this!" Grabbing Logan's healthy arm, he tried to help him up and groaned immediately under the dead weight of the body. His look became even more worried and his eyes suddenly noticed the liquid at Cyber's claws. It couldn't be that one single mutant had injured him so badly, he thought and began to feel Logan's pulse which was racing horribly. "Come on, I have to get you up!" Cyclops said and tried it once more but couldn't make it. Then he recognized that the panting sounded more and more like death rattle. "Do you have trouble breathing?" he asked him, knowing that this was a stupid question, but he had to keep him conscious. Managing to lift at least the upper body up, Cyclops saw that Logan pulled a face and was shaking all over, while his wounds were bleeding. Suddenly, his breath became flatter and he dropped lifelessly to the ground.

"No!" Cyclops yelled and grabbed his fall as good as he could. Checking his vitals once more he pulled all his strength together and lifted him up to his shoulder. Stumbling under the dead weight, he made his way to the elevator as fast as he could. Inside he had to watch how more of Logan's wounds began to reopen and how the ground was soon covered in blood. He realized that he had to hurry otherwise his comrade would suffer from a far too great loss of blood. His eyes had seen the pool of the red liquid not far away from where he'd found him. Walking over to the wooden door, he kicked it open and entered the tunnel; biting his lips in exhaustion. Still he could still hear the flat breathing. As he nearly reached the hiding place, he fell to his knees. Panting, he looked up. "Moira!" Cyclops yelled as loud as he could and laid Logan to the ground, while he opened the rests of his uniform to make it easier for hi comrade to breathe. "Damn it! I need help here!" He bent down to Logan and listened carefully, as he heard footsteps.

"What's wrong?" she asked and suddenly sped up. "Oh God…" Kneeling down beside him, Scott looked at her frightened.

"I don't know what's wrong with him," he explained in panic and watched her checking the pulse. "He couldn't move or breathe regularly and was shaking all over."

She bent her head down and lowered her mouth to his. Breathing out she quickly turned her head and listened. "Get him up quickly! I can't get any air into his lungs." Turning around, she quickly ran back, while Scott lifted Logan up again and followed her. Inside, he could only hear her yelling at the others to make room and saw Beast and the others looking at him in shock.

"Oh no…," Hank gasped as he saw his friend hanging like dead over the shoulder of their former leader.

Carefully, Scott laid Logan down on an empty bed, before he stepped aside and watched Moira pulling a respirator towards them. "Get aside!" she said roughly and took and started working on the X-Man in front of her. Turning around, Scott met Hank's eyes once more. It was easy for him to tell what the blue mutant was thinking. Clenching his fists, he looked down. "Damn it," Moira suddenly cursed and bent Logan's head back even more while trying to get the tube into the trachea. "I can't get it into him!"

Hearing Rogue beginning to sob heavily, Scott turned around and walked over to her, while Bobby laid an arm around her. Seeing that he wasn't needed there, he turned instead towards Storm, who had sat up and watched the whole scenery with widened eyes. Pulling her close, she clung to him and couldn't take her eyes away from her friend who didn't move a bit.

Hank was also watching Moira, who had finally managed to hook Logan up to the pulmonary stimulation machine, which immediately began to pump air into his lungs. Quickly she connected him to the other machines and turned one after the next on. Suddenly she froze.

"What?" Hank asked her immediately and sat up a bit, ignoring his own pain for that moment. "Moira what is it!"

Also Scott, Rogue and the others were staring at her in tension, when she gave them an indefinable look. Her hand touched one of the monitors slightly and turned it towards them. With widened eyes they couldn't help but stare at the flat heart line it displayed…

**So, that was chapter 39. It took me a bit longer, because I had again trouble to write it. Jean's fight and Logan's were the first scenes I had written. I made some changes today and I am glad that I finally finished this chapter. I'm sorry for keeping you waiting again. ; )**

**I already wrote one scene of Chapter 40 and began to write the Epilogue.**

**Some of you guys said you would like to see a sequel. I already have an idea for it and planned one (and also write some scenes), so if enough of you want one, let me know and you'll get it. Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter! See ya and tanks for the reviews!**


	41. Chapter 40

_**Author's note: **Guys, you can still wish for something you'd like to see happening in the Epilogue! I already added two wishes in this chapter and the third I received will be in the last chapter. So, let me know!_

**Changes Chapter 40** (2nd version)

They all couldn't help but stare at the flat line the monitor projected, which was accompanied by a long, monotonous sounding beep. Besides this, no other sound could be heard, as suddenly, Lily started crying aloud, while Storm and Rogue began to sob heavily. Moira only shook her head. She kept on looking to and fro between the monitor and the body next to her. She couldn't believe that they've failed. That they broke the promise they had made to each other, when they'd sworn that no one of them would die today. That they wouldn't let it happen. Especially he had said it… Icemen did his best to calm his shaking girlfriend who tried to soothe Lily, while Cyclops held Storm tight, whose sobs were accompanied by painful hisses. He himself only stared. Giving the Professor a short glance, he saw in the eyes of his mentor a deep sadness rising. He knew he blamed himself for not being able to help him. And he also knew who else he was thinking about…

"Scott! Come over here!" Moira suddenly said aloud and very urgent. He looked up and watched her running to the corner of a room, searching through some small bottles. "Come on! What are you waiting for, hurry!"

Slowly, Cyclops got up and walked over to her, followed by the looks of the others. He didn't know what she wanted, how he could be of help and how she intended or believed that she could change anything… "What do you want me to do?" he therefore asked sounding pretty confused.

"Do CPR, while I ran over to the infirmary. I don't have the stuff here I need, damn it," she cursed and ran off. "Just keep his heart beating!"

Shaking his head, he bent forward to begin with a cardiac massage. He would do what she wanted, even if he didn't believe that it would change anything. Touching his comrades chest, the monitor suddenly began to beep in an irregular slow rhythm.

"What the…!" Cyclops said and looked at the others, who just raised their heads and had the same odd expression on their faces. "But I didn't do anything…" he added in confusion and looked down on Logan, just to stare at the monitor in the next second. Rogue only stared down on the suddenly completely calm Lily.

"Might be his healing factor," the Professor's voice suddenly sounded and the man raised his head a bit, grimacing in pain shortly, since he had a skull breaking headache. "It wants to keep him alive by all means."

"Yeah, but it won't be of any help," Mystique commented in a sarcastic voice and walked over to a trey with bandages and other medical equipment. She had seen what the others hadn't so far.

"Why?", Cyclops asked her confused and watched her beginning to dress Logan's several wounds.

"Because his bleeding to death, you idiot!" she hissed and could only roll her eyes about his stupidity. She actually thought this was obvious, since the blood kept on flowing out of the wounds onto the table. She watched how a large wound on the abdomen began to reopen. She didn't have to ask, she knew who had caused it and narrowed her eyes hated. She really hoped that he had killed them…

"It's useless," Cyclops cursed and shook his head, while pressing a cloth on the large wound. "We can't stop it!"

"We have to keep on working until she's back, haven't we? So go on with it!"

He stared into her merciless and angry yellow eyes, while she ignored him and kept on treating the wounds as good as possible. "You're not our guest here, don't forget that!"

Hearing someone heavily breathing, they all looked up as Moira came back, holding some equipment in her hand. "You made it?", she asked surprised and stared at the monitor.

"Actually," Cyclops answered. "No, it started on its own again."

She cocked an eyebrow at him and shook her head, before she laid everything on the table next to them. "God, this is worse than I thought…," she said more to herself when she saw all the blood. "Okay, step back. I need to do a surgery. Otherwise even his healing factor can't help him anymore." She bent over Logan's body and examined the wounds quickly, before she grabbed something from the pile she had just brought with her. Beginning to stitch the large wounds, she looked up from time to time and gave the still irregular heartbeat a worried look. She new she had to do this very quickly and even if she managed it to stop the bleeding, they couldn't be sure… "Try to get Jean, I need her help here!"

"Are you crazy?" Cyclops asked her shocked. "If Jean only sees…"

"If I see what?"

Turning around, they all stared at the red head in shock who sent Colossus, whose wounds were already treated, telekinetically to a bed. Cyclops swallowed hard and gave the Professor a worried look. He didn't know how to start or what to say. "Jean, look…"

"If I see what!" she asked again and stepped forward; seeing the fear in the eyes of the others, which had immediately caused her heart to contract before it had began to beat triple rhythms. Something was terribly wrong. She knew it… Coming closer, her eyes drifted off to a black torn uniform which looked like as if it had been sent through a shredder. Some parts had yellow lines on it like her had red ones. Yellow lines…, she thought and her eyes widened. Instantly she knew what was wrong. "No!" she gasped and pushed Cyclops out of the way who could only bit her lip and watched her standing like frozen in front of the table. Her hand covered her mouth as she started to pant in shock and she completely forgot about her surroundings. She only had eyes for him…

"Jean, I need your help here, do you hear me?" Moira asked her in an urgent voice. "Jean!"

Looking at her with completely confused eyes, which told everyone immediately that she was totally lost and couldn't think straight, the red head seemed to stare through her opposite. "You need to help me!" the woman in front of her tried again and met her eyes. She had to help her getting over the shock. She couldn't do it alone. "Logan needs you, Jean!"

Blinking, Jean looked down again, closing her eyes for a brief moment, before she heaved a deep sigh. "What do you want me to do?" she asked barely audible.

"We need to stop the bleeding. He already lost too much blood," Moira explained quickly and handed over a needle. "I'll take care of the wounds here. You treat the rest." She saw how Jean's eyes stared at the monitor. "Don't look at it! Just concentrate on your work here. We need to help him, do you understand me?" The other woman nodded and desperately tried to think professional when she began to start working; not thinking about that it was him…

Cyclops had looked at Colossus in the meanwhile. He noticed that he couldn't be of any help here. Jean had already done her job and he could tell by the look of the man in front of him that she had very likely transported him to the infirmary to treat the wounds. Still, he could only shake his head. They had taken more damage than they could cause themselves. Their strongest fighters were badly wounded, only the kids were still fighting. And Nightcrawler of course. He walked over to the Professor and bent down a bit. What he had to say was only for the ears of his mentor. "We have to do a retreat," he told him mentally and gave him a serious look. "There are far too many casualties here and Magneto still has mutants left who can fight. We can't risk that the rest of us gets killed…"

"I know what you mean," Charles answered. "I already told Angel and Nightcrawler to get the others and come back." Sadly he looked at the two doctors who were still fighting with the wounds. "It's worse than I have ever imagined it, Scott. Far worse…"

His opposite followed his look. "Yeah, it truly is…"

Mystique, who had leant against a table and had watched Jean and Moira working on Logan came closer and tapped him on the shoulder. "What did the mutant look like who Logan fought with?"

Confused, Cyclops thought about her question briefly. "Silver arms, blue dress, mean face…"

He watched how her chin dropped and her eyes switched towards Logan. "Why? Do you know him?"

Without answering him, Mystique walked over to the two women. "He's poisoned!"

"What?" Moira asked her and looked up briefly. "How do you want to know?"

"The mutant who attacked him is called Cyber. His claws contain strong neurotoxins and hallucinogens."

"He can't be poisoned. His healing factor would fight the substances immediately," Jean gave back stressed. "He's immune to substances like that."

Mystique gave her a cold glare. "Well, not if those toxins were specifically designed to affect Wolverine, right?" she shot back and both women looked up. "And they were! There are a lot of people out there who would like to see him dead, just in case you don't know. But does Weapon X ring a bell by you!" She looked down on the body in front of her. "And if you haven't noticed, he shaking all over and sweating." With that she turned around to retire to her corner again.

Jean immediately bent forward as she was finished with her part of the wounds and laid a hand on his cheek. "Oh God…"

Moira looked up when she heard her gasp. "What is it?"

"He's burning up with fever. His skin is like on flames…"

Her opposite briefly touched Logan's arm. "You're right," she said and looked up, as the monitor began to beep warningly. Moira shook her head panicky. "His system is completely overloaded. He can't deal with everything at once…"

"But there must be something you can do," Rogue suddenly nearly yelled. "Please! Help him!" She looked at them through wet eyes, her expression completely despaired. She'd never been so scared in her life before. Not even when Magneto had forced her to absorb his powers. Watching a friend, her best friend, die without being able to help him was the most painful thing she had ever gone through. Sobbing, she shook her head and buried it in her hands. "Please, help him…"

_Bampf._ Shrieking, the students backed off as Nightcrawler suddenly appeared in front of them. Cyclops and some others watched him coming closer with a frightened look on his face. "She's dying," he said and looked down on Wolfsbane's limb body in his arms. "Multiple Man and Juggernaut attacked her. I was too late." Sadly he closed his eyes.

"It's not your fault, Kurt," Charles tried to soothe him. "Lay her down there."

Beast had moved a bit and grimaced in pain. "If someone helps me, I can treat her."

"No, if you don't stop moving you're wound will reopen," Moira warned him and shook her head. "I can't use you to bleed to death, too. So don't even dare to move an inch!"

"But you can't do this all alone. Both need you help," he replied weakly and looked at her in despair.

"Do you know how to treat wounds properly?", the woman suddenly asked and all eyes turned to Mystique.

"Mostly," the blue woman replied chilly.

"Try to help her until we are finished her, will you?"

Shrugging, Mystique walked over to the girl and grabbed some bandages from the tray. She didn't care a bit about the others watching her suspiciously. Beast suddenly grabbed Nightcrawler's arm. "In my lab," he said tiredly. "There is a cupboard with pills and medicine. I put the vial with Logan's healing factor in it too. It's a light blue liquid and there must be still three of them. Can you get them from there?" His opposite nodded and disappeared immediately.

"It will take too long until it takes effect," Cyclops commented his idea. "It took almost five weeks until Jean was fine again and they don't have this time."

"I think it took so long with her because Phoenix was fighting it," Beast replied with half closed eyes. "We have to try it. It's their only chance." He watched how the women began to put cold cloths on Logan's body. Sadly, he closed his eyes and shook his head.

"If his temperature goes over 108 F we'll be in trouble. He can go into convulsive seizures or shock…," Moira said while Jean waited for the thermometer to finish its job. Under her hands, she felt his muscles tense violently. "I think he has heavy pains…" She looked at the red head who still waited for a result to appear on the display before her gaze switched to the monitors. "Logan can't take this… His heart-valve timing is fluctuating!"

"No, wonder," Jean said frightened. "It's over 108 F…"

"Damn it!" Moira cursed and dipped the cloths in cold water again. "We have to give him…"

_Bampf._ All of a sudden, Nightcrawler reappeared, holding a vial in his hands. "Only one?", the woman asked him confused.

"Only one left. The others were destroyed," he replied and looked at the others. "The room was a whole mess…"

"We need at least two if we want to get both through," she said panicky. "What now?"

Jean watched her filling an injection. "What is this?" she asked her and gave her an odd look.

"Anti-fever drug," Moira replied confused.

"You can't give it to him," the red head immediately said and shook her head. "Everything that's not natural to his body is regarded as a threat. His body will fight it and you will only make it worse."

"His healing factor is apparently not working right now," Moira replied and wanted to get past her, but Jean grabbed her hand. "Jean, we have to give him something or else his body is quitting again. And I doubt that he'll survive this!"

"His healing factor works on his heart to keep it beating," her opposite hissed. "You're not giving him other drugs, you understand me?"

Cyclops stepped forward. "Jean," he said calmly and grabbed her shoulder. "She's right. He won't make it without medicine."

"You don't understand!" she shot back. "He is already drugged! It will cause more damage than good to him! We can't give him the cure either, because we don't know if the substance was changed by those scientists or if his body can deal with it. Give it to her, he would want it that way." He saw her fear and despair in her eyes and knew she would do anything to keep them away from him. "We have to get the drugs out of him. Before that his healing factor won't kick in completely." Turning she watched how Moira was close to inject the drug into him. With an easy movement of her hand, she sent her backwards a bit. "You do as I say!" she hissed and her eyes glowed fiery for a brief moment on what the others gave her shocked looks.

"Jean," Charles said calmly and raised his head a bit. "I know that you are scared, but Moira only wants to help him."

"The life systems are spiking, Jean!" Moira shrieked and gave her a dark look. "We've got to do something now!"

"What about the liquid?" Cyclops asked and looked to and fro between the women. "Wolfsbane is barely breathing anymore!" He had done his best to treat her with Mystique's help before while Beast had given them instructions.

"Can't you split it?" Storm asked weakly and still had her eyes on Logan who was shaking all over in fever and pain. "So that you can help both of them?"

Moira shook her head while drawing a bit blood from him. "I doubt it. It wouldn't be enough to kick in maybe. I'll go and analyze the blood quickly. In that way we know what toxins are in his body."

Jean sighed and closed her eyes while supporting herself against the table. She could only lower her head and shake it. It was a nightmare for her. The worst she could ever imagine. Neither did she know what to do, nor what could possibly help him. She looked at the monitors emotionless which were still spiking violently. She had to do something…

"Jean," Cyclops said reassuringly and laid his hands on her shoulders supporting. "You're doing everything you can. Don't blame yourself… It's only up to him now. And he's fighting, you know that…"

"What happened to him?" she asked and turned around with tears in her eyes. It hurt him seeing her being so lost and despaired.

"I don't know," he answered honestly while looking down on Logan for a brief second. "He laid on the ground and couldn't move. Then he had trouble breathing and blacked out. When I Moira finally hooked him up to the machines, he had already gone into cardiac arrest and then his heart started on its own again," he told her calmly, still not believing everything was real. "Magneto must have sent his most powerful mutants against him. You know that he can easily take care of himself. I think he was trying to run away from them. Logan would have never come back to the house with them following him, if it wasn't for his life. He would have never endangered us…"

Surprised over his words and that he was talking in a positive way over her fiancé for the first time ever as far as she could remember, Jean gave him a sad look, before she turned around again, when Moira reappeared. "We've got to think about something quickly!" she told Jean with fear in her voice. "Look at this!" She handed her a piece of paper.

Cyclops bent forward and frowned since he didn't understand a word which was written down on it. "What does this mean?"

Moira checked the monitors once more before she noticed that Logan's tissues were regressing. She could only shake her head. "He's full of life-threatening poisons," she told him bluntly. "Toxic alkaloids, Lophophora Williamsii, dozen different organic poisons, traces of hallucinogenic alkaloids… Pick one!"

"Do we have a dialysis?" Jean suddenly asked her without looking at her. She still had her eyes fixed on the monitors and watched the irregular lines.

Moira cocked an eyebrow. "He's too weak for it…"

"That wasn't my question!" the red head shot back. "Do we, yes or no?"

"Yes, in the lab."

Without thinking twice, Jean turned around to Nightcrawler. "Can you get it from there?" Nodding, he disappeared.

"Jean…," Moira tried again, but her opposite shook her head; showing her clearly that she didn't want to hear anything from her. "He lost too much blood… He won't make it!"

"He would never give up on us, so don't you dare giving up on him!" Jean hissed and gave her a cold glare, while her eyes burned fiery once more. "We need to get the poison out of him first. And it's the only way to do it." Without looking at the other woman, who only stared at her in respect because of this sudden change in her personality, she turned around. "Bobby!"

"Yeah," he replied carefully and a bit scared of her.

"I need you to cool his body. We have to lower the fever."

"Ehm,…okay!" Iceman got up and walked over to the table, not really knowing what exactly she wanted him to do. "But how?"

Jean thought about it briefly. She hadn't thought about the how, only about the necessity. "Can you," she began and wrinkled her brows in thought. "Can you affect the air around him? I mean not really freezing it, just getting it cooler than it is now?"

Iceman gave her a confused look. He had never tried something like that. "I…I don't know. I never did it."

"Try it!" she only said and turned as another noise sounded right behind her. "You got it?"

"Yes," Nightcrawler replied even if he had just grabbed something of which he thought that this was what they called a dialysis. "Is this right?"

Jean nodded and helped him to carry it over to the table. Moira still stood opposite her and only shook her head. She hadn't had a good feeling about it. Nevertheless, she also didn't want to fight with the red head. Especially not after she'd seen what the woman was capable of. "Do you want to just stare or be of help?" Jean suddenly asked her harshly, the anger completely visible in her voice.

Cyclops could only shake his head and turned while they hooked Logan up to the machine. He walked over to the students and watched them, before he heard footsteps in the tunnel. "Kurt!" he said aloud and pointed towards it and the blue mutant understood. "We're not letting them through if it's the enemy." Waiting they kept their eyes on the tunnel, being ready to strike and fight if necessary. Relieved they calmed down when they noticed a feathered white wing. "It's only them," Cyclops said and stepped forward.

Angel, Magma, Sunfire and Karma stopped right in front of him. "Sorry that it took so long to come back," the young man said. "But they are retreating for a group discussion or something like that and we couldn't get through first."

"It's okay," Cyclops replied and studied them closely. "Is anyone of you hurt?" They shook their heads.

"Only a few scratches," Magma said and Karma nodded, while they looked at the mess in shock.

"Good." He turned to Angel, who switched from Moira and Jean to him again. "How many of them are left?"

The boy thought about it briefly, before he shook his head. "I don't know. They were 30 or something and now… At least," he tried to remember how many of them he'd seen. "…around 15 or more."

"Damn," Cyclops cursed and clenched his fist. "We only have seven left. The others are too badly wounded." Worried, he turned around and looked at his comrades. He knew a second attack would be devastating for them. They were running out of time and had to make plans. "Okay, everyone who's still healthy gets over here. We have to make a plan!" He waited until everyone was gathered around him, before he frowned. "Hey, where's Jean?" he asked in confusion and gave Moira a look, but she hadn't noticed the absence first either. Mystique on the contrary had seen it and had managed to sneak out of the room, too, following the red head to the upper level.

XXX

"Have you found the child?" Magneto asked and turned towards Emma who looked rather bored and shook her head. "And where are Shadow King and Unus?" He looked into the sixteen men strong group.

"Don't know. I got bored and looked for some other stuff to play with," the light haired woman. "They kept on torturing the _almighty_ Phoenix."

"Don't underestimate her!" Magneto snapped and gave her a cold look. "If they aren't here she has probably killed them, you stupid girl!"

"I highly doubt that!" She replied arrogantly. "She couldn't even defend herself. Only begged us to stop. And when I left her eyes went all black."

The master of magnetism crossed his arms in front of his chest thinking. "So, she turned into her counterpart then…," he thought aloud and looked over towards the mansion, before he had to smirk. "Well, that could become interesting."

"What about me?" Pyro asked and held up his frozen hands. "Can anyone get rid off this stuff? I wanna fight!"

"Can you?" Magneto asked Emma who only snorted before she went over to the young man.

Their leader only shook his head in annoyance. His blue eyes switched over to the mansion again and he smiled. He would win, this was for sure. His Brotherhood still outnumbered the X-Men and with Phoenix inside, he was definitely the winner.

"Eric!"

Magneto sighed and looked at the helmet in his hand. "What do you want Charles?" he asked uninterested.

"Stop this! It leads to nothing but pain and death. It doesn't have to end like this!"

"Wrong, it will end like this!" he shot back and put his helmet back on his head. "You and your X-Men should have thought about it before, old friend. It will end tonight, but your X-Men can still surrender and no one will get hurt anymore."

"You know that they will never do it! But most of them are only children, Eric! Doesn't this mean anything to you?"

"Honestly, no!" Magneto shot back and turned towards his Brotherhood who only waited to attack, even if most of the 16 were hurt. "Good-bye, old friend!" He watched how Pyro moved his hands slowly and tried to use his powers. Satisfied he saw as a small flame shot out of his hand.

"Ready!" Pyro smiled devilishly.

"Where's Mystique?" Magneto asked them and looked to and fro. He hadn't seen her the whole time through as far as he could remember.

"Here!" she suddenly said right behind him and stepped forward, while he watched her suspiciously. "How do we proceed?"

"What's the situation in there?" he asked her instead. "I miss Sabretooth, Cyber, Bloodscream and Wendigo."

"They are dead," she replied coldly. "He killed them."

Clenching his fists, Magneto cursed briefly. "I hope they killed him too?"

But she only shook her head. "No, they didn't."

"Doesn't matter," he said through clenched teeth and turned to the whole group. "My brothers! This will be our last attack and if I say last, I mean it! We will take them down by no means, my friends. We will destroy their last stand and finally wipe them out!"

"Look, who's coming!" Emma suddenly said and smirked; arms crossed in front of his chest.

Frowning, Magneto turned around as all of a sudden, a satisfied smile appeared on his face. "My dear, I am glad that you have found your way back to us!" Stepping forward, he crashed against a tree in the next second. Confused he looked up. "What are you all waiting for?" he barked. "Attack her!"

Looking at each other, they waited before Juggernaut sprinted forward, aiming his helmet at Jean who stood all alone in the middle of the half destroyed garden; eyes angrily fixed on them directly. Running at her right behind him, they watched how she rose into the air, arms spread. Furiously, Pyro shot his flames at her, while the teleporter vanished, just to reappear right behind her. Narrowing her eyes, Jean glared at them. Her eyes burned up with fire, before it began to cover her whole body within an instant. Watching her, Magneto looked at Mystique who still stood right next to him. "What are you waiting for?" She only smiled at him, before she turned and kicked him to the ground. First, he gave her a surprised look, before his eyes narrowed in anger. "So you are the spy. I am very disappointed, my dear!"

"Save your breath old man!" she hissed and grabbed him. "You're gonna pay!"

"For what?" he asked her arrogantly and got up from the ground. "For leaving a homo sapient behind? What do you think are they gonna do with you, huh? Do you think they welcome you to their school? After everything you've done?"

Mystique glared at him, while a giant explosion and a loud shriek echoed through the scenery, causing the ground to vibrate heavily. Blinded by a dazzling light, they had to cover their eyes for a brief moment; not being able to see anything at all. "I don't expect them to," she shot back and made sidesteps after he began to move. "But I'll never forgive you for what you've done!"

"Really?" he asked her sarcastically. "I don't care about traitors like you!"

"You're the only traitor to his own kind here!" Mystique replied and pounced on him.

The Brotherhood members stared into the sky in astonishment and fear as a giant firebird began to rise above Phoenix. Her glowing eyes were glaring at them, were so full of hate and thirst for revenge. She would make them pay for what they've done to her friends and family. Raising her arms even higher, the bird shrieked aloud and spread its wings proudly, sending devastating waves into every direction. Some mutants underneath her ran away screaming as fast as they could, while few others still kept on attacking her, even if it was useless. Her corona blocked every attack they came up with and she could only smile.

Looking up arrogantly as ever, Emma crossed her arms in front of her chest. She didn't even bother to start an attack. She was intelligent enough to see that the furious woman above her was stronger than her. Shrugging, she ran to the safest part of the garden and stopped there, just to be thrown to the ground by a giant energy wave, which Phoenix radiated constantly every few seconds. Raising her head a bit, her eyes widened as the firebird grew higher and higher until it covered half of the mansion. Holding her ears while her eyes were tightly closed in pain, she had to scream in pain as the bird let out another loud but also shrill shriek once more. Without thinking twice, she turned around and ran away as fast as she could.

XXX

"What was that?" Cyclops asked frightened as a loud explosion caused the walls to shake.

He looked at the Professor who had closed his eyes and concentrated; ignoring his still painful headache. "It's Jean."

"What? She's outside?" he asked him and stepped forward. "Is she crazy? They are gonna kill her!"

"I'd rather say she's going to kill them," Charles replied calmly, but also scared. "She's furious and so strong… I'm afraid that she might lose it."

"I'll go upstairs!"

"No, Scott!" Storm said and shook her head weakly. "You have no idea what she's like if Phoenix takes over."

He saw the fear and concern in her eyes. "But we can't let that happen!"

"We have to trust her, Scott!" Charles said as calmly as possible despite his inner turmoil. "We can't do much more than that. Logan taught her everything he knows to keep the beast within her under control. So we have to wait and hope that she won't act irrationally. No one of us can stop her anyway…"

The students shrieked as another muffled sounding explosion caused the hiding place to vibrate violently again. Worriedly, the others looked up.

XXX

Screaming in fear, the other mutants began to run towards the woods as the firebird did a nosedive and went after them; beak wide opened and eyes narrowed. Cutting of their escape route by a large whirlwind which began to surround them, they stopped and watched with widened eyes how the bird came quickly closer and closer. Saw how things began to float through the cool air. Spreading its wings, it was ready to swallow and burn them to ashes all at once, as it suddenly stopped…

One arm raised, Phoenix glowing eyes met Magneto's who had managed to knock Mystique out with an iron bar. She saw how he raised his hands and gathered every metallic object he could find above his head to a large cannonball and narrowed her eyes, which began to glow even more. "Take your men and retreat!" she hissed in a low and very dark sounding voice.

"Never!" he shot back and turned the cannonball above his head. "Why do you stick with them, my dear? After all they've done to you?"

"Don't even try to manipulate me, Magneto!" Phoenix warned him menacingly and the flamed around her began to flicker violently. "Take them and leave! Or no one of you will survive today!"

"Manipulating you?" He gave a derisive laugh. "I only try to save you, Jean! Wasn't it your precious Wolverine who killed you in the end? Weren't it your friends who showed you the cold shoulder? Oh, don't look like that, my dear! I know what you've been gone through. You don't belong with such traitors." He gave her a smile, knowing that he would win her back. "Take your kid and come back to us, Jean."

"You're not gonna touch them!" she hissed and the firebird shrieked aloud in rage.

"Them?" Magneto asked and frowned before it hit him. "I see. So you and this runt have twins… Well, that's news as I might say."

"Leave my family alone," she hissed and the fire began to cover her whole body; swallowing her from head to toe and making her appear more like a flaming, living torch. "Take them and leave, it's my last warning!"

"Your decision," he replied with a pitiful undertone. "But I'll get your powerful offspring anyway, you know that, my dear!" Seeing her gritting her teeth in fury, he quickly raised his hand and shot the giant cannonball at her, just to widen his eyes as it exploded in his elements all of a sudden. He felt the ground starting to shake and the strong wind of the whirlwind in front of him. He had to admit that he was scared to death.

"We should go!" Pyro said next to him and Magneto gave him, Juggernaut, Multiple Man and two others a weird look. "She's going to kill them and no offence, but I don't want to be burned to ashes. That's actually my job!" Helping him up, they ran into the woods as the bird shrieked once more and mixed its furious scream with those of the mutants who couldn't run away anymore. They were trapped and the bird already had started its final attack…

XXX

"Can you feel anything?" Rogue asked and Charles sighed in frustration.

"Magneto and few others escaped. But Jean's fury doesn't wear off…" Suddenly he frowned.

"What?" Cyclops immediately asked and bent forward, supporting himself against the table. "What is it?"

"Everything's quiet all of a sudden. I…I don't feel anything anymore." Worriedly, he looked up.

"What does that mean?" the man in front him asked frightened. "Is she alive?"

The Professor could only shake his head. "I don't know…"

Turning around after a moment, Cyclops headed for the door. "No matter what you think, I go and look!"

Abruptly, he stopped and his eyes widened. "Jean…"

Raising their heads, Charles, Storm and Beast looked at the red head who sent Mystique telekinetically to another free table without saying anything. Frowning, they looked at each other in confusion.

"Jean, what happened up there? What did you do?" Cyclops asked her while she began to dress the wound on Mystique's head carefully.

"What do you think?" she hissed coldly.

"You killed them?"

"Most of them," she replied barely audible and stared down, concentrating on her work hard, while he stared at her in shock. When she was done, she walked over to Logan again; completely ignoring the looks of the others. She knew what they were thinking, but she didn't care. It had happened and she couldn't stop herself from doing it. She had enough to do to cope with the guilt she felt and with her inner fear which kept on eating her up from within. She couldn't lose him. Not now…

Cyclops had looked down for several minutes before he was able to think straight again. Somehow he kept on telling himself that she hadn't killed them in blind rage. He wanted to believe that she at least had given them the chance to flee… Shaking his head and heaving a deep sigh, he turned his head. "What now?"

Charles had already sat down in his wheelchair again, which Nightcrawler had gotten him from Cerebro. "Since they are really gone, we should go out and look at the damage the fight has caused. If the dormitories are still intact, the students can return to their rooms. They are pretty much exhausted."

"Everyone except Logan can be brought to the infirmary. It's too risky to move him," Moira said and looked at the weak lines on the monitors. "At least I hope that not everything in there was destroyed…"

"No, the infirmary was intact, but the lab took damage," Nightcrawler told her and joined the Professor and Cyclops. Together they left.

Jean hadn't moved an inch. She just stood there, eyes closed and held his hands while her heart was racing within her.

XXX

"That will be a lot of work…," Cyclops commented while staring at the large gap in the west wing of the mansion. "This was the sport where Juggernaut hit Colossus. We can't use the upper level here or the wall collapses completely."

Charles nodded. "Ororo can take care of the garden when she feels better, but you're right. It will take quiet some time before we can use this part again." His eyes scanned the rest of the backside, which was dipped into orange-red light by the rising sun. The fight had lasted the whole night through, he thought. "I will call a construction firm later," he said and moved over to the backdoor. "They can take care of it. Now let's see what else needs to be done."

"Has she really killed them?" Cyclops suddenly asked and Xavier closed his eyes as if a pain just had jolted through his body. He had only waited for him to ask this. The question was bothering Scott the whole time through. Charles had felt it.

"Yes. I'm afraid she has," he replied calmly and Nightcrawler looked down.

"But why?" Cyclops asked despaired. "I mean… If it was Logan who did it, okay. I know that he's capable of something like that, but Jean…"

"Scott," the Professor said and turned around, giving the young man a serious look. "You have never seen what she is capable of. I only know it, because Ororo was so kind to let me see it. Jean is a powerful mutant. The only class five mutant I know. Her powers are limitless and she can do anything she wants. No one can stop her if she unleashes her full power."

"But I thought Logan worked with her on it," he gave back and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I thought as long as her is there it can't happen to her again."

"That's the point," his opposite replied calmly. "Logan wasn't there. She has seen the damage the Brotherhood has caused. Not only on him, but on every one of us and she got angry. And anger immediately goes over in revengeful. She wanted to protect us. And what I have caught of some minds, she even gave them the chance to leave and never come back, but Eric…" He shook his head. "It's in Jean's nature, Scott. The Phoenix and the Wolverine are very similar to each other. Both are uncontrollable if they get to the surface. Both want to punish in order to protect their family. You can't blame Jean for it. She already feels bad enough."

Cyclops sighed and gave Nightcrawler a brief glance. "It's just… Sometimes I think I don't even know her. I…I don't recognize the Jean I knew before."

"I know," his opposite said and moved again towards the mansion with them following him. "I keep on asking myself if I hadn't put those barriers into her head would she be different today? Would she have been the same Jean as she is now? Would she have been able to control her powers from the beginning? There are so many questions on which we will never have an answer. But the fact is she knows what she has done and it is hard for her to deal with it. Especially with Logan being at death's door." He gave both men a short look. "We have to be there for her and help her. But there's nothing else we can do." Nodding, they knew what he meant and followed him silently into the building again.

XXX

After the wounded X-Men were brought to the infirmary and the students had returned to their bedrooms, Jean was still at Logan's side, while the twins were sleeping on the empty bed next to her. Holding his hand, her sad and despaired green eyes stared at him and waited for the dialysis to do its job. Frightened, she watched how he still shook in pain and fever and felt completely helpless and lost. He was covered all over with bandages, far more than back after Liberty Island. Sitting down on the chair next to the bed, she laid her head into her free hand and sighed, before shaking her head. What could she do? How could she help him? Could she even help him! Turning her head only a bit, she looked at him once more with an indefinable expression on her face. She wanted to be strong for him, to help him with her own strengths as he always did for her. But she'd never realized how hard, if not impossible for her, it actually was. Hearing the monotonous sound of his irregular heartbeat, she bit her lip hard, while she was still holding his right hand tightly.

"You know," Jean began barely audible and looked down. "…this is one of those moments again, Logan. When I come to you being a complete mess and all girly-like…and have nothing better to do than starting to cry because of something I can't cope with which was in fact nothing you would even worry about…" She blinked and took a deep breath trying desperately to calm herself. "I killed them, Logan… Not all of them but many. I don't even know why I did it," she shook her head and bit her lip had, while her muscles tensed violently. Her trembling lips caused her voice to shake in between. "But then again, I know I wanted to do it. I wanted to make them feel the pain. To feel the sorrow and pain they left you with…" Jean looked up again. The despair and anguish was written down on her face, was visible in her eyes, which were steadily getting wetter. "And I know what you would do just now," biting her lip once more, she swallowed hard since her voice wavered. She needed to be strong for him now. She wanted to. "You would shake your head and just hold me without replying anything. But it's enough for me to feel good again. And you know it. You always do." Heaving a loud sigh her lips began to tremble even harder. "You always protect me…and I always fail to do the same for you. Every time you have to suffer because of me. I always cause you suffering and pain just because I am too damn insecure and weak. And I don't know why… I keep on asking myself it…why I'm not able to protect you only once. Only one damn time." Staring down on her hands she shook her head again. She couldn't continue while her heart was nearly breaking in her chest. She needed a break. "I don't know what to do anymore. I can blast a damn planet at once but I can't help you… How strange is that! And you know what?" she asked and smirked cynically. "I can't even keep up my strength for you… I'm trying but I just can't… It's really one of those moments, Logan," Jean shook her head in despair and fought to hold back her tears by heaving another deep sigh. "I really need you to take me into your arms and tell me that everything's going to be alright again." Her voice broke immediately when she looked at him again and realized the whole situation once more. Loudly she began to cry and bent forward to bury her face on his shoulder as she always did in such a situation. Sitting like this for a moment, she closed her eyes briefly. "Please don't leave me. I need you so much…," she said calmly during several sobs and took his hand again. "You still owe me a trip to Canada and a suite, remember? You promised me," she added and pulled a face before another sob left her throat. "And you always keep them…so don't start breaking them now!"

XXX

A few days later, after she recovered from her injuries, Mystique stood in front of Professor X's desk and stared at him skeptically. From the outside, the noise of the construction workers could be heard, which were still fixing the damage on the mansion. Looking around in the office, her yellow eyes finally came to a rest on the kind looking man in front of her again. Charles bent forward a bit and smiled at her slightly. "I wanted to talk with you about how you intended to proceed," he said in his casual calm voice and watched her closely. Even if he tried hard, there was no visible emotion mirrored on her face. "You helped us a lot during the fight with Eric and as far as I know you have no place to go."

"So you want me to stay?" she asked in distrust and crossed her arms in front of her chest, while she eyed him suspiciously.

Charles leant back again. "It's up to you. If you decide to stay, you can stay here. If you want to leave, you are free to do so," he explained. "But if you decide to stay, you'll have to be aware of the fact that it will take time before the others will warm up with you. They haven't forgotten about what had happened before! You'll have to show them that you really want to be part of this school and also that you can be trusted."

She gave him a cold smile. "They'll never trust me! It's a waste of time."

He smiled again and shook his head briefly. "It was Logan who asked for help, wasn't it," Charles asked her knowingly in return. "You tried to abduct Jean when she was pregnant with his children, you turned us against him and I nearly expelled him out of this school, too. Still, he asked you for help. And if he can give you a chance, the others will take a leaf out of his book because they look up to him. They trust his judgment completely! And Logan would definitely have been the hardest to convince if you decided to stay." Looking down, but still not moving an inch, she thought about his words briefly. "We have some children here with the same gift than yours. You could help them dealing with it and teach them to handle their mutation."

Giving him a disgusted look she made a face. "You want me to teach children?" she asked in a voice which gave the impression she would start vomiting any minute.

The Professor shook his head. "I don't want you to do it! It's up to you, but no one of us does understand what they are going through as good as you," he explained calmly. "You don't have to make a decision now. You can use a room upstairs and think about my offer or you try it for let's say two weeks and make a final decision afterwards." Mystique looked at him skeptically again and was quiet for minutes. Finally she nodded in agreement. She knew she had no home anymore after betraying Magneto. And he would kill her for it. She was sure about that. He would look for her and make her pay. His opposite smiled at her kindly. "Good," Charles said and moved around the table towards the door. "I'll show you your room."

XXX

Footsteps echoed through the long tunnel and soon Moira came into view; glancing briefly at the chaos the first room still was, before she entered the second one. Pausing briefly, she took notice of Jean, who was sleeping with the on her right on a bed next to Logan's. Walking over to the monitors, which she quickly checked, she draw a bit blood from him and turned around to the computers. Jean didn't wake up, while she was working on it for about half an hour before she returned to Logan. Wrinkling her brows Moira studied the results of the blood test, before she gave him a confused look. Suddenly, Jean sat up. "It's only me!" the woman immediately said calmly.

Tiredly, Jean ran a hand through her face, before she looked at the sleeping babies. Turning her head once more, she noticed the paper in her opposite's hands. "You did a test?"

Moira nodded and handed it over to her. "The toxins are gone, so are the hallucinogens," she explained briefly. "But still he isn't healing. And this is what confuses me." She looked at the monitors again, which projected irregular lines. "The blood loss is already balanced. But why isn't he healing?"

Jean put the paper away. "It's overtaxed," she replied barely audible and sat up. "It had to keep him alive, fight the toxins and rebuilt blood. And without any food he hasn't much power left to give it enough energy for the healing process. It happened before when he saved Rogue and gave her his energy. It took weeks before he started to heal." Worriedly she looked at him.

Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Moira met her gaze. "But he's also not breathing on his own. And he should by now since the neurotoxins are gone."

Jean shrugged and shook her head. "If his lungs got injured…they probably might not be able to work properly. I mean look at the display. He barely keeps the oxygen repletion up."

"Yeah…" Moira nodded. "If this doesn't change soon he will take serious damage from it… I already hooked him up to new liquids. Do you think that's enough to help his healing factor?"

The red head shook her head. "No, he needs a lot of food after such an exertion. Liquids will help to keep him alive so that he's not starving and supply his body with nutrients, but it's not enough to give him enough energy."

Understanding, Moira nodded sadly and looked at him again. She really didn't know what to do. After endless minutes, she finally looked at Jean again. "You look tired. If you want, I'll stay and you can lay down upstairs."

"No, I'll stay here!" Jean immediately waved off. She wouldn't leave his side.

"Jean," her opposite said warningly and came closer. "You're not him. It's a complete different thing if he sits next to you day after day without sleeping and eating or if you do it. You need food and sleep!"

"The healing factor still works in me, remember?" she gave back more harshly than she intended to. "I'm not leaving his side!"

"Fine," Moira finally sighed. "What about the twins?"

Jean looked down on them. "I fed them a few minutes ago. They're fine."  
"Good. If anything happens, call me!" The dark haired woman laid a hand on her shoulder reassuringly, before she left her alone again. Heaving a deep sigh, Jean buried her face in her hands and shook her head in despair.

XXX

"She's not coming?" Scott asked after Moira entered the kitchen.

"No, she wants to stay with him," she replied and sat down on an empty chair. "The two of them are really the most stubborn people I have ever met."

Hank put his glass down. "That's why they fit together… Any changes?"

"No, his state is still critical." Lost in thoughts she stared at the water bottle. "And I don't know what to do…" An uncomfortable silence filled the room and everyone just stared into emptiness, following their own thoughts.

"He's a fighter," Ororo suddenly said barely audible. "If he wants to make it, he will. Logan doesn't give up."

Moira nodded. "I hope you're right…" She looked into the round and frowned suddenly. "Mystique's again not eating?"

"Well, I'd rather say she avoids us," Scott corrected her. "And she better does! I don't trust her and don't know what she's doing here."

"Well, you've heard Charles," Hank said and looked at him. "She helped us, whatever her reason might have been, but she did." He got up and walked towards the door. "I'll go and get her. She needs to eat."

Shaking his head, Scott reached over and got some bread from the basket. He sighed before he looked at Ororo who just stared down on the glass in her hands. He still hadn't gotten an answer what Sabretooth had really done to her. If he'd done what everyone was thinking. Her face was still covered with wounds and bruises, which were either stitched or taped. She also limped and it was painful for her to walk. But it was her eyes which worried him… "'Ro?" he asked her calmly and she looked up a bit. Hesitating for a moment, Scott tried to find the right words. He needed to know. "Did he… I mean did Sabretooth…you know…"

Looking down on her hands, she shook her head. "No," she replied in a whisper and bit her lip. "He tried but I attacked him. I used too much power and the bolt destroyed the whole room." She paused for a brief moment. "But I don't know what he did when I was unconscious…", she added barely audible and swallowed hard.

"He didn't touch you," Moira said quickly, since she had noticed the disturbed look on her face. "I checked it and there were no signs."

"Thank God," Scott said relived and leant back. "I wonder what happened to him…"

"I hope Logan killed him," Ororo hissed and her eyes immediately changed, while she grabbed the glass hard.

Before he was able to reply everyone turned their heads towards the door and watched Mystique who was standing next to Hank. The blue man made an inviting gesture. "You can sit down over there," he told her and led her to the empty stool, while the others followed her movements suspiciously. Mystique only met their eyes briefly, before she sat down. Sitting opposite to her, Hank reached over the bread basket and a clean glass. "Here you go."

Starting to eat slowly, Scott watched her suspiciously through his glasses, making a mental note that he had to talk to the Professor about it.

XXX

Going on with her routine, Jean spent most of her time in the hiding place watching over Logan, while the others alternately took care of the children. She barely knew about what was happening in the mansion in the meanwhile, that the damage was already fixed and every room could be occupied again. Not even that the leaves of the trees already changed their colors. Standing next to him, she held his hand, letting him know that she was there and only waited for him to wake up. Nevertheless, she barely had any hope left that it would happen. His wounds were all healed, no scratches were left on his skin…

Not hearing the approaching footsteps, she didn't take notice as Ororo suddenly stood right next to her. Worriedly, the other woman looked at Logan first, before she turned towards her friend. "How is he?", she asked carefully.

Jean only sighed and shook her head. "Unchanged…"

Ororo also looked down with a sad look on her face. She really couldn't believe it. "It's really not fair," she spat and became angry in an instant. "He saved so many of us and we can't help him." Jean only gave her a short tired look before her eyes were fixed on him again. "The students are asking. What am I supposed to tell them?" she asked the red head and laid a hand on her shoulder. "I mean…if he hadn't trained them so well…they'd be dead now. And they now that! They are worried about him."

Jean bit her lip briefly and didn't say anything for a while. She hadn't had an answer either… "He'll make it. It just takes so long because his healing factor was completely overloaded."

"Yeah but," Ororo replied and looked at him again. "…shouldn't he be breathing in his own by now?" she added carefully. Her blue eyes switched to Jean again who didn't reply anything first, but finally nodded sadly. Reassuringly, she laid a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it briefly. "You did everything you could, Jean. You should sleep a bit. Moira and Charles are taking care of the twins so that you can get some rest."

"I'll sleep here. Thanks."

"Okay," Ororo nodded and turned around to leave again, while Jean lowered her head in despair; still holding his hand tightly.

Hours later, she opened her eyes in confusion and realized that she must have fallen asleep. Blinking, she looked at the monitors again only to realize that they were still unchanged. Sighting loudly, she ran a hand through her face. Getting up to get some water to drink, she kept on asking himself how he managed to sit four weeks next to her without going crazy. She couldn't deal with it anymore; it was driving her nuts… Swallowing water, Jean rested against the wall and closed her eyes as suddenly a monitor began to beep violently. Opening her eyes rapidly, the glass fell to the ground when she looked at the heart rate. The line was spiking violently. Immediately she ran over to him and bent down, noticing that his muscles were tensed. He tried to breath panicky… Desperately trying to calm him mentally, Jean pulled the tube out of his throat and watched how Logan fought hard to get air into his lungs. Scared to death, Jean ignored her own heart rate which was nearly as much racing as his was and took his hand into hers, while he coughed and retched heavily. She was afraid he would suffer from a heart attack when the monitor began to beep even louder. Heavily breathing in shock, she could only stare. After a moment, which appeared to her as an eternity, Logan fell back panting as his lungs finally began to work slowly again.

Close to start crying, Jean held back her tears and could only stare at him. She couldn't believe what she actually saw. She didn't even realize that she was still heavily breathing. She watched how he blinked and slowly opened his eyes weakly a bit. Holding her breath, she stepped a bit closer, still holding his hand tightly. He tried to adjust to the unfamiliar bright light of the room and finally turned his head slowly till their eyes met.

"Hey," she said softly and bent down while she bit her lips. She swallowed hard and stroked his cheek gently before a single tear ran down her face. Smiling at him, she watched how he slowly closed his eyes tiredly again and fell asleep. Pulling a face, Jean began to sob calmly in relief and buried her face on his neck as she always did in such a situation. Sitting like this for a while, she heaved deep breaths and tried to calm herself again. Even if she had seen it, she still couldn't believe it was really true. Looking at him tiredly, she put the tube away and laid down next to him; clinging to him tightly. It didn't take her long to fall asleep while her hand rested on his chest holding his.

When she awoke again hours later, someone was slowly stroking over her hair. Opening her eyes, Jean looked up a bit into still tired looking hazel pools. "Hey," she said barely audible and turned a bit to have a better look at him. "How are you?"

Logan swallowed hard after trying to reply. "Fantastic," he finally managed to say and sounded very hoarsely.

She smiled softly at him when she remembered that it was the same answer he'd given her after they had returned from Liberty Island. Back then, it had nearly cost him his life, too. "You scared the shit out of me, Logan," she barely managed to say when her voice broke and she began to cry heartrendingly. "I nearly lost you…"

"Sorry." He touched her cheek gently and watched her leaning into it. "How did we do?" She looked down embarrassed, not sure what to tell him. "Hey…," he said worriedly after noticing it and raised her head by touching her chin.

"Many got wounded but not as badly as you…"  
"And?" he asked knowing that this wasn't all.

"Speaking in your terms," Jean replied and swallowed hard "…I went berserk… I attacked them after seeing you." Logan noticed that she didn't start crying because of it. "I killed a few of them."

He shook his head a bit and held her tight. "I'd have done the same. So don't blame yourself, darlin'!"

Jean noticed that his voice was still weak and it caused him a great effort to speak. Her hand touched his cheek gently and stroked over it lost in thoughts. "You should sleep a bit more…"

"How long was I knocked out?" he asked her instead, ignoring the dizziness he felt.

She sighed. "Nearly two months."

"What!" he asked aloud shocked and his voice broke; not used to it anymore. "Which date is today?" he added calmer after he found his voice again.

"October 5th, 3:15 a.m."

"Jesus…" He ran a hand through his face and couldn't believe it.

Jean pushed him back a bit. "Go back to sleep," she said soothingly and gave him a worried look. "We can talk later about everything, but you need to rest now, Logan. Your body is still weak and you look more than tired."

He nodded and returned the look she gave him. "What about you?"

"I'll stay," she assured him and laid down again, resting her head on his shoulder. "Are you still in pain or do you have trouble breathing?"

"Nope…only tired."

Looking up at him, Jean noticed that he was already asleep. Smiling slightly, she closed her eyes after taking his hand into hers again. It didn't take long and she, too, was asleep again.

XXX

The day after, Jean had awoken alone since he was gone. Frightened, she had run down the tunnel to the upper levels just to find his clothes in their room and the shower being used. Confused she had run down to the kitchen again but there, too, she couldn't find him. She was only greeted by Rogue and the others who had cheered at her that he was finally back. Still, they couldn't tell where he'd gone to. After searching nearly every room and even asking Mystique, who she had met on one corridor, she entered the library just to see him sitting on a table with lots of books in front of him. "There you are…," she said relieved and came closer while her eyes looked at the books briefly. "You shouldn't get up already, you know." Jean sat down on the armrest and frowned as she noticed that he'd made three piles with books in foreign languages on the table.

"I'm fine, Jeannie," Logan assured her even if his voice still sounded hoarse.

"You just woke up after two months, Logan. You're still not completely your old self again," she protested and laid a hand on his arm. "You should take it easy…" She looked at him worriedly, but he only chuckled.

"I can't overwork myself by reading books, darlin', can I?"

Jean had to smile while she cautiously wrapped her arms around his neck. "What are you doing here anyway?"

He laid the book he held in his hand on the left pile. "Following your advice."

"My advice?" she asked confused and gave him a questioning look.

"You wanted me to read through the foreign language section."

"Right," she nodded when she remembered it. "So, how are you doing with it? What about those three piles!"

"Can on the right, can't left, can a bit middle," Logan explained shortly and looked at the books in confusion.

Jean's eyes had widened when she looked at the right and middle pile. "So many!" she asked shock, but also surprised. "That's amazing…" She bent forward to look at them more closely, while he watched her amused. "French, Russian, German… How come you know so many?" she wanted to know while she kept on reading through them.

Logan shrugged. "Dunno. I'm surprised myself…" Suddenly, Jean frowned and grabbed a book from the right pile which title was written in characters. She turned it in her hands and cocked an eyebrow. Logan had noticed it. "Japanese," he answered her thoughts.

"Japanese!" she said and sounded as if he had just told her he had stripped for the girls while she was still asleep. "You speak Japanese!"

Logan took the book out of her hands and opened it. "Yeah…"

"How!"

"Dunno…," he replied and shook his head while he narrowed his eyes. "I mean…how come I remember the stuff here but not what happened before I woke up in that darn wood?"

"I don't know", Jean replied soothingly and pulled him closer again. "But I'm rather curious why you know so many languages…" Her eyes switched to the piles again. "Even Mandarin and Russian…"

Logan's eyes were watching her again. He could only smirk about her excitement. "Yeah, you're going to marry a real genius, darlin'…" he teased her.

"Idiot!" she cursed jokingly and slapped him softly.

Still smirking, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her neck. "So, ya missed me?"

"I was worried like hell," Jean replied in whisper and broke eye contact, while she played with the book.

"No need to be, darlin'," Logan gave back reassuringly and stroked over her back.

"Logan, you nearly died!" Jean gave him a serious look and he saw the fear she had felt for him.

He took the book out of her hands and laid it down on the table. "Well, actually I did for a few minutes as far as I've heard."

"It's not funny," she said sadly.

"I know," he said and put his hand under her chin so that her eyes finally met again. "Look, I'm fine… Nothing's gonna happen to me."

Jean gave him a warning look. "I told you to stay in bed and now look where you are. Your healing factor doesn't need any distractions now…"

Logan shrugged playfully. "Well, if I'd gone back after using the shower you wouldn't have been there to nurse me. So I'd have gotten bored."

She smiled and shook her head. "I said _no_ distractions, Logan!"

"Not even a bed-time story?" he teased her and cocked an eyebrow at her in disappointment.

Jean had to grin and got up. Telekinetically, she sent all book back into the shelves, except the Japanese one. She'd noticed that he was very interested in it. Taking his hand both walked back to their room in silence, while he studied the book more closely.

"What is it about?" she suddenly asked him since he couldn't take his eyes from it.

"History and legends of the samurai," he mumbled and put his free arm around her waist.

Curiously, she looked at a picture on a page. "How come you're so interested in it?"

Logan shrugged. "As I said…dunno."

"And what about Hank calling you our samurai!" she added since Ororo and Moira had told her that the blue man kept on doing it.

He laughed slightly. "So you wanna hear a bed-time story, eh? I thought no distractions…" he gave her a wolfish grin.

Jean returned this with a smile of hers. "Yeah, but I want to know!"

Logan smirked satisfied. "Well…if you're nice to you're patient," he cocked an eyebrow at her playfully. "…then I might show my appreciation."

She could only shake her head; not believing how fast he suddenly seemed to recover. All of a sudden he stopped. "What…?" Jean wanted to ask as she followed his look. He'd spotted Mystique at the end of the corridor.

"What's she still doing here?" he grunted and narrowed his eyes.

"Charles told her that she could either stay or leave. She helped us during the fight and even attacked Magneto."

He gave her an angry look. "And she tried to abduct you while you were pregnant!"

Jean looked down briefly. "Well, he did it because you asked her for help. He thought you wanted to give her a chance."

He gave a hoarse derisive laugh. "Did he?" Logan spat and shook his head. "I asked her for help because she was our joker in that fight. I ain't giving her a chance!" He looked down the corridor and watched Mystique approaching.

She took his hand into hers to calm him down again. "Moira told me that she is trying to be part of our school. Logan…," she swallowed and tried to find the right words. "I'm not happy with it either, but think about it. She has no place to go anymore. It was you who told her about what family means and she's really trying. As unbelievable it might is…"

His hazel pools looked at her suspiciously. He didn't trust her. Turning his head, he met Mystique's yellow eyes who were looking at him curiously. Nodding, she walked past them, while Jean noticed that Logan was following her movement as if she was his prey. "Stop!" he said and handed Jean the book, before he walked over to the blue woman and grabbed her arm roughly. The red head watched how he pulled her into the next room and closed the door behind them aloud. Sighing, she looked down on the book and opened it while she waited.

XXX

Mystique stood opposite a pissed looking Logan and waited. He had his arms crossed in front of his chest and gave her a glare as if he was seizing her up for a coffin. "What is this?" he asked her menacing, ignoring his scratching throat.

"What is what?" she gave back and folded her arms, too.

"What are you still doing here?"

She cocked an eyebrow at him frowning. "I was given a choice. And I made one."

"Hm," he nodded playfully and stepped closer. "And you're staying here because of….what!"

Mystique narrowed her eyes. "I did what you asked for, didn't I?"

"Yeah, as far as I've heard you did." Still he looked at her menacingly. "But I have my doubts that you just switched sides so easily and be the good girl now…"

She narrowed her eyes. "So what? You throw me out?"

"No," he replied and stepped closer, looking at her even more threatening. "You want a chance, fine ya get one. But I warn you!" he continued in a low voice. "If you ever hurt someone here or even get close to my family…I'll kill ya, got that?" She nodded. "Good." Turning around he was on his way to the door again.

"You can't fool her, you know," Mystique suddenly said and made him stop.

"What!" he growled and met her eyes.

She stepped closer until they were only inches away. "You're not feeling well, I can see that. So can she. And she went through hell, don't forget that!" She said and touched the doorknob, while he growled.

"What is that now, eh?"

She opened the door and gave him one last look. "Just an advice!"

Watching her leave, Logan narrowed his eyes. "I'll keep my eyes on ya, girl. You bet on that!"

XXX

Circa two weeks later, Ororo, Jubilee and Kitty went shopping for the baby-party which Hank had planned for nearly four months now. While walking through the mall, they kept on looking for stuff like decoration and presents; already holding two shopping bags in each hand. They still needed something, something special. Nevertheless, they didn't exactly know what Jubilee meant with…special…

"Wait!" the girl suddenly said aloud and ran over to a shop which sold party decoration in different variations. Her eyes were fixed on garlands and balloons. "What about them?" she asked and pointed to something.

Ororo and Kitty followed her lead and looked at her object of desire. "Well,…come back with pink balloons with yellow ribbons and puppy-dog-eyed bears on it and Logan is faster on your throat than Kurt can disappear," Ororo replied skeptically.

Jubilee turned around with a big grin on her lips. "Precisely!"

Smiling, the white haired woman understood. "Okay, let's buy them!"

Kitty only shook her head and waited for them to come out again. In the meanwhile, she looked around and thought about what she could actually buy for the babies. She had already tried to make a mental list, but couldn't come up with something useful.

"That's gonna be a lot of fun," she heard Jubilee saying behind her and turned around again. "Hey, why are ya making such a face?"

"I still need gift," the girl replied and shrugged. "But I don't know what."

Ororo thought about it briefly. "What about some clothing?" she suggested. "Jean and Logan could use some for their twins when they get taller. And Marie…well, clothing is always good, I think."

Jubilee grabbed Kitty's hand and pulled her with her. "There's a store over there. Come on!"

They walked over to it and it was the same Jubilee went to before with Logan, Jean, Bobby and Rogue. Still knowing where the clothing was, she took the lead and quickly made her way through the store. Pointing to it grinning, she immediately began to search through the stuff. "What about that one here?" she asked after a while and held up a dazzling yellow suite.

"Jubes!" Kitty shrieked and shook her head. "I don't want to give the kids their shock of their lives!"

"Why? It's a nice color!"

Helplessly, Kitty looked towards Ororo who could only smile until her face suddenly changed. "Gosh, is that cute!" the woman gasped and Jubilee immediately looked around the corner. Her eyes scanned over the white fleecy suit with a hood. "What? You want them to look like little bears!" she asked and made a face.

"I think it's very cute," Kitty replied and looked at the suit a bit closer. "Do they have two of them?"

"Hold on a second," Ororo said and searched through the clothing once more.

"And what about those little round ears on the hood?" Jubilee asked and shook her head.

"It's cute!" Kitty protested and gave her a look.

"It's…," the black haired girl gesticulated in the air on her search for the right words. "Wolves-cubs-like."

Ororo smiled widely while handing over a second suite to Kitty. "Precisely!"

XXX

In the meanwhile, Charles and Moira sat in his office and drank tea while discussing several topics which they regarded as important. It hadn't taken long and Moira had begun to talk about the attack once more. She still couldn't forget the affects it had caused.

"We can be glad that no one of them has taken any serious and persistent damage from their injuries. But still…we were very lucky, Charles. Especially Logan!"

He nodded while putting his cup down. "I know. I never imagined that Eric would attack us so heavily. He never did this to other mutants before," he replied while narrowing his eyes a bit. "I guess I have been completely mistaken…"

"How come that he hates Logan so much anyway?" she asked curiously. "Has anything happened between the two of them in the past?"

"Hank told me that it was Logan's idea to cure Eric when he'd begun to attack everyone on Alcatraz," he told her and met her gaze. "But both of them never liked each other very much. There's always been a great hostility between them."

Moira nodded in understanding. "I see," she said and looked at the dark liquid in her cup in thoughts. "Well, Logan can call himself very lucky that he's still alive… It was a sure thing that he wouldn't survive it."

Charles slowly nodded sadly. "It would have been devastating for us if we had lost him. Not only for Jean and their children," he said and their eyes met again. "Logan has really become the soul and heart of our team. Something which I've never imagined before…"

"Why?", she asked surprised and frowned. "I mean okay, he's often grumpy, gruff, broody, stubborn and not a man of many words, but… He's also very caring and gently. Especially with his family. And he's also protective and responsible and has a great sense of honor. So why did you have doubts!"

The Professor smiled at her. "Better don't let him hear that you think about him in that way, Moira! Or he takes the first bus back to Canada," he replied and she had to smile; knowing what he meant. She knew Logan hated to show his more kind sides to others. "I wasn't sure that he would stay or even…call the school a home because," Xavier looked for the right words to explain it to her. She hadn't had the same knowledge than he had. "You have to know that Logan doesn't remember anything about his life from before he woke up in a wood in Canada. He didn't trust others when we found him. He hid his positive characteristics behind mistrust and rejection. I never expected him to stay here for very long or that he let someone actually touch his heart. I'm surprised that he changed so much. Above all that he agreed to lead the X-Men and hadn't left once since Alkali Lake. I've never expected that he would become so important for the team and school."

She nodded lost in thoughts. "But what do you think will happen if he regains his complete memory one day?"

"Honestly," Charles replied and shook his head. "I don't know…" Looking up as it suddenly knocked on the door, he smiled softly. "Come in, Jean."

The door opened slowly and the red head stepped inside with a piece of paper in her hand. "Oh, I didn't know…," she said as she noticed Moira. "I can come back later."

"No, you're not interrupting," Charles waved off and pointed towards an empty chair. "How can I help you? You look quiet confused…"

"Yeah, I really am." She came closer while she kept on looking at the paper.

"What's wrong, Jean?" he asked her worriedly since he felt her confusion mentally.

"I…I wondered if," she stuttered and shook her head.

"If?"

Jean sighed. "The few times you tried to read Logan's mind…," she began and looked at him. "Have you ever caught something from his past? Countries where he'd been to or something like that?"

Charles shook his head. "You know that his mind is fragile. It's impossible to read it properly. But why are you asking? What's bothering you so much?" He pointed again to the empty chair in front of him. "Sit down." She obeyed, not knowing where to start. "Jean?" Charles asked her completely concerned now. "Did something happen?"

"He doesn't show aftereffects from his injuries, does he?" Moira immediately asked frightened.

"No! No, it's just…it's nothing wrong with him. It's just…" Jean tried to explain but didn't know what to say. She looked at the others and sighed aloud. "When Kurt came back, Logan accidentally spoke German with him without even noticing it."

"Logan speaks German!" the other woman asked surprised and exchanged a short look with the Professor.

Jean nodded briefly. "I was shocked about it. I mean… He didn't even know himself that he had this knowledge. So I asked him to search through the foreign language section in the library."

"And? Did he do it?" Charles asked curiously and bent forward.

"Yes."

"What's the result? Does he know more?" Moira asked curiously and she, too, moved closer with her chair.

"Not only more," the red head told them and looked up. "After how much he actually understood, I made some research in the interne and also picked some rarely known languages like old Indian tribe ones.

"What's the result!" the other woman asked again completely excited. She wanted to know the answer and she wanted it fast.

Jean handed over the paper to Charles who read through it in astonishment. "That's…that's more than impressive…"

"What? How many does he know!"

The red head looked at her. "15 in total."

Her opposite's eyes widened. "What! That's impossible! No one could ever manage this!"

"I know, but it is true!" Jean shook her head. "He speaks five fluent, English included. Is also skilled in Mandarin, can translate bits of Afghan, is rusty in Cantonese, Tibetan and Vietnamese… He does even know Blackfoot and Siksika, but also Cuban, Spanish and Portuguese. I mean…," she ran a hand through her hair. "How is that possible? He must have been in nearly every country of this world…"

Charles nodded slowly. "I don't know, Jean. I can only say that I'm more than quiet impressed."

Impatiently, Moira took the paper out of his hands and read through it. "Fluent in German, French, Russian, English, of course, and…Japanese!" Impressed she cocked an eyebrow at Jean. "I don't know what to say…"

"Me neither…," Jean replied and looked down. "The thing is that Logan is confused now. He didn't know before that he was skilled in those languages. So it was some kind of shock for him, too. But he doesn't understand that this knowledge is all of a sudden back now that he found out about it."

"Well," Charles folded his hands on the table. "The knowledge was there before, I assume. He had only forgotten about it after he lost his memory."

"But that's the point!" Jean gave back and practically stared at him. "Why does he remember it just like that, but not even a bit of his past! Those skills are connected with it but he doesn't even know when or where he learnt them."

"Don't forget that he's way older than we think, Jean! He'd a lot of more time to learn then we do."

The red head nodded and broke eye contact. "I know, but still…" She didn't know what to say.

"It's a big surprise," Moira ended her sentence while she still looked at the paper.

"Precisely!" Jean answered and gave her a look.

XXX

Logan was outside working on a bike when he suddenly heard a car approaching. Cocking an eyebrow, he looked up and watched how Ororo stopped the car a few meters away from him and Jubilee getting out of it waving at him.

"Hey Wolvie!" she called and beckoned him to come over. "Come on, move your butt and help carrying the stuff inside!"

"Jubes!" Kitty shrieked and shook her head about her friend's behavior.

"He's till your teacher, girl! Don't forget that!" Ororo told her and handed over the bags.

"Well, then sexy butt if you prefer it that way…," the girl grinned.

Ororo sighed but had to smirk. "You're incorrigible, young lady!"

"Did you buy the whole mall?" Logan grunted and gave Jubilee a look since he'd of course heard what she'd said.

"Mostly," Jubilee nodded. "So, you gonna be of help or what!"

Logan only looked at the amount of bags and boxes with one hand in his pocket while the other scratched the back of his head. And Ororo wasn't even done unloading the car. "Girls…," he sighed and shook his head. Taking the boxes into his hands, he walked over to the front door. "Can't even walk past a store without buying up everything," he mumbled cocked an eyebrow.

"Look who's talking!" Ororo suddenly said next to him and smiled. "Do I have to remind you that it's you who still has to buy a suit for your wedding, mister?"

"Yeah, when do we go shopping?" Jubilee immediately cheered and looked at him hopefully.

"Forget it!" Logan grunted and shook his head while trying to open the front door with his foot.

Kitty frowned. "But you have to get one. You can't go in your casual stuff."

"She's right!" Ororo nodded. "Did you plan to wear your leather jacket?"

"No!" Jubilee immediately shrieked and placed her hand over the woman's mouth. "Don't!"

"Oh, right!" the white haired woman blushed and gave the girls her best sorry-look. "I mean you can't wear it, right… So, do you intend to wear…a woman beater?" she tried to save the situation.

Cocking an eyebrow at them, Logan shook his head. He didn't even want to think about it further. "Nope. But you're not coming!"

"Why?" Jubilee wanted to know and pouted.

"Ain't gonna go through that chick stuff and chattering."

"But you need someone to guide you," the girl protested and gave him her best begging smile. "Someone who comments on how you look, you know?"

He nodded and smirked at her devilishly. "Exactly that's why you're not coming!"

"That's mean!"

He gave Ororo a look. "Where do you want that stuff?"

"Oh, just drop it at the stairs!"

He put it carefully onto the ground and cracked his neck. "Anything else?" he asked sighing and hoped they would say no.

"No, thanks for helping!" Ororo waved off and gave him a smile.

He nodded and turned around, while Jubilee watched him heading for the elevator. "Still, you're mean, Wolvie!"

Kitty dropped the bags exhausted next to the boxes. "So, where do we start, girls?"

XXX

Logan dropped some boxes in the corner of the lab, creating a more or less stable pile with it. Cocking an eyebrow he slowly let go of it and waited for it to fall down, but obviously it wouldn't do him the favor. "Is that all?" he asked and turned around.

"Yeah," Jean nodded lost in thoughts and read through the list again, while checking the inventory.

"What's in those things anyway?"

"New medical equipment," she replied and he smirked since she was completely lost in her work. Testing her concentration, he stepped very close behind her and lowered his head so that she could feel his breath on her neck. "Hank will do the rest, so we're done here," she immediately said and shivered.

Smirking, he cocked an eyebrow at her and watched how she put away the list and pencil. "Lunch time anyhow…," he yawned and stretched a bit. Grabbing her hand he put out the light and they walked over to the elevator.

"I wonder what they've planned for tomorrow," Jean said and leant her head against his shoulder.

"Well, ya know'em," Logan shrugged. "Girly stuff with bright colors, lots of stuffed animals and many _oh how cute_'s."

She had to laugh since he had tried to imitate Jubilee's voice. "It's gonna be fun, you'll see," she replied and smiled. "We can use a party after all the stuff that had happened."

Logan put an arm around her waist while they waited for the elevator. "As long as Jubes ain't gonna do any of her weird stuff again…" They entered it and Jean leant against the wall, straightening her short black skirt, while he pushed the button. First, Logan leant against the opposite wall, watching her, before he gave her a wolfish grin. "What?" Jean asked confused and looked up at him, while she took her hands away from the skirt.

Logan stepped closer and placed his hands on each side of her against the wall. "Just figures something out," he said in a husky voice and made her heart beat faster instantly. "Guess what elevators can do!"

"What?" she asked him barely audible and looked at him with widened eyes.

He smirked. "They can stop!" Quickly he pushed a button and the elevator came to a halt.

Jean looked at the display on the wall and gave him a look. "Logan! They're waiting with dinner…"

He shrugged and pulled her closer. "Let'em wait!" he whispered in her ear and sent chills down her spine. He caressed her neck softly. "Two weeks of no touching since I listened to your advice," he continued and stroked down her back. "And ya expect me not to react to your dress, eh?"

"So this is my fault now?" she asked him flirtingly and he locks eyes with her.

"Yeah, you're fault that our poor friends have t'wait a bit longer. It was you who rejected me and kept on feeding me with soup only, remember?" He grabbed her neck and pulled her head quickly closer, tongue-kissing her passionately, while she wrapped her arms around his neck; just to force him to come even closer. Hearing him sigh in passion, she moaned softly into his mouth, enjoying his caressing of her body while her hands automatically began to work on his belt. Grinning satisfied, while he kept on kissing her passionately, he waited until she had wrapped her arms around his neck again. Pulling her up, Jean crossed her legs behind his back while he held her steady. Looking at each other with dazed eyes heavily breathing, Jean pulled him into another passionate kiss…

XXX

In the meanwhile the others sat in the kitchen and waited. "Did you get everything for the party?" Moira asked and put folded her hands on the table.

"Actually, yeah. At least we've enough deco-stuff," Kitty replied.

"Yeah, Wolvie will love it!" Jubilee grinned and even Ororo smiled.

"Why? Did you buy pink ribbons and teddy bears?" Scott asked them and put his glass down smirking. Jubilee and Kitty only grinned at him. "Kurt, I want that on tape!" the man said and looked over to the blue mutant who was talking to Ororo. "Hey, are you listening?"

"Ja," Kurt replied and smiled shyly at the white haired woman who smiled back at him.

"Gosh, where are the two of them?" Hank asked annoyed and shook his head while his stomach made a noise. "I thought Jean said _we bring the boxes down quickly_…"

"A similar sounding word as quickly might be the answer, guys!" Jubilee mumbled and played with the yellow straw in her glass. All heads immediately turned towards her.

"You're scaring me, girl!" Scott said and shook his head. "And I'm not talking about what the two of them might be doing right now!"

She only grinned. "Wanna bet I'm right?"

Hank nodded and laid a hand on Scott's shoulder. "Very scary indeed!"

Moira cleared her throat to change the subject again. "Another thing. Does anyone know when the wedding is?" she asked. "Did they say anything!"

"No, not as far as I know," Ororo said and shook her head.

"Well, but he gave at least the hint that no girl is going to shop with him for a suit," Jubilee added and winked at her.

Scott gave a derisive laugh. "Oh, he can be sure that I accompany him!"

"Yeah, me too!" Hank grinned and both men exchanged devilish glances.

Jubilee bent over to them. "Make a picture, will ya?"

Jean entered the kitchen with Logan on her hand, who had the other one in his pocket. Both had to frown when they noticed the strange looks the others gave them. "Did you leave a love bite?" Jean immediately asked him mentally and gave him a warning look. She knew that he loved to do it as a sign that she was his.

Logan smirked at her. "No, and even if…who cares!" he replied on the same way.

"I do…"

He led her over to a stool and both sat down. Logan glared at the others warningly, before he smirked at her again. "Ain't the only one who leaves marks, darlin'."

She gave him another look. "But they vanish on you instantly. Yours do not anymore, you know that," she gave back over their link.

He only chuckled. "Complaining now, huh?" he asked her mentally and cocked an eyebrow at her smirking. "Ya didn't a few minutes ago, gorgeous."

The others had watched them the whole time through, being aware that both had a conversation on their psychic link. "Done havening fun?" Jubilee asked them bluntly. "We're waiting, you know?" Logan only shrugged, while Jean blushed slightly. "See?" she said to Scott and grinned. "Look into his satisfied face. I'd have won!"

Scott shrugged, too. "I'm not betting with you, Jubes!"

"You bet!" Jean asked shocked and looked at him with widened eyes. She couldn't believe that they were already doing bets on them…

"No, we didn't. But Jubes wanted to," Scott tried to calm her down again.

Hank nodded. "Yeah, that girl is pretty scary!" His eyes switched over to Logan who was already eating his meal; obviously being happy that Jean finally let him eat real food again and not only soups. He was sick of it and didn't want to discuss his need for meat all over again. Because of her he had lost more weight instead of gaining some. "So, when are you going to buy the suit?"

Logan cocked an eyebrow at him while he froze in his movement and swallowed his food. "What do you guys have with a suit!"

"Well, you need one for the wedding…," Moira explained and looked up.

"Did we tell ya a specific date?" he growled and narrowed his eyes. "No, we didn't! So stop going on my nerves!"

Scott playfully backed off a little. "Woah, some one is in his moods again, huh?"

"Shut up, Cyke!" he grunted and glared at him.

"Hey!" Jean said and gave him a confused look. "What's gotten into you now!"

"Nothin'," Logan replied stressed. "I'm here to eat and not to discuss something which ain't happen so soon!"

She snorted. "Oh, it isn't!"

"Nope!"

Jubilee bent over to Hank and Scott who lowered their heads to her. "Here they go…"

"So when do you plan on marrying me then?" Jean asked him angrily and met his gaze.

Logan only shrugged. "Next five years maybe…"

She gave a derisive laugh and smiled cynically. "Next five years _maybe_!"

"Yeah, what's wrong about it?" he shot back getting angry.

"Nothing!" she spat through clenched teeth and turned around to look at her plate again.

"Then what's this kerfuffle about then?" he asked her growling.

Jean shrugged offended. "If you don't understand it, then I can't help you!" she shot back and grabbed a piece of break; pulling at each end violently until it tore in the middle.

Logan had watched her doing so and snorted while he shook his head. "Is that nonsense PMS or what?" Turning her head quickly, she glared at him menacingly, while the others kept on looking to and fro between them. For them, it was always the biggest entertainment if the two lovers began to bite their heads off. "When did you plan on doing it!" he added quickly before she would throw the bread at him.

"Actually May," she replied pissed.

"Fine, then May in three years. How about that?"

She shook her head snorting. "_Next _May, Logan."

He cocked an eyebrow at her. "Next May! Are you out of your mind!" he asked her aloud in disbelief.

Jean slammed the bread onto the plate. "What's wrong with it?" she shot back not minder calmer than he was.

"That's too soon!"

"It's in 7 month! What's too soon about it!" she asked him angrily. "Do you need more time to reconsider your proposal, or what's your problem?"

"There's nothing to reconsider!" he gave back and shook his head, not knowing how she could even doubt that he really meant it back then…

"Then what! What's all this nagging about?" she asked him calmer, but still angry. "I thought we could celebrate it on May 10th with the twins' first birthday…"

"Yeah, so that he can't forget the wedding anniversary," Jubilee mumbled and chewed on her bread, as Logan quickly turned growling and glared at her warningly. She swallowed by the look he gave her. "Never mind! Go on biting your heads off!"

Jean waited while keeping her eyes on him. "Do I still get an answer from you today?"

"Hey…," Moira intervened soothingly. She couldn't understand how this couple could love and hate each other in the same moment so much. "…just try to calm down for a moment, okay?"

"Stay out of it!" Jean hissed and gave her a short look.

Logan shook his head. "As I said PMS!" Getting off the chair he walked towards the door, ignoring the look Jean shot at him.

"Oh, so we're running again now? You'll pretty good at it, you know?" she snorted and narrowed her eyes briefly, while her heart raced in anger.

Sighing, Logan stopped on the spot and turned around again; glaring at her in anger. Looking at each other for a few minutes, while the others only looked to and fro between them, Jean was about to say something again, as Logan made few steps and grabbed her head hard; forcing her into a kiss and cutting her off. "Fine, May 10th then," he grunted and let go off her just to walk towards the door again.

Jean looked at him in confusion and with blushed cheeks. "Where are you going now?"

"Lily's crying," he explained briefly. "And stop making that face!"

Jean frowns and turned around again after he had left. "Which face?" she mumbled aloud.

"This 'being caught in surprise and blushed' face," Kitty explained grinning slightly, but not as much as she wanted to. She knew the woman in front of her was still angry.

"I'm not making it!" Jean shot back and took the fork into her hand again.

"Yeah, you do," Hank replied without looking at her. Within he had to grin, too. The two of them always were quiet the show and he loved to see Logan being completely overtaxed with the furious red head.

"So, May 10th then?" Moira asked cautiously and Jean only shrugged. "Okay, May 10th."

Not being able to hold back his grin anymore, Hank raised his head. "Do you always end your fights like this?"

"Yeah, just as it became interesting…," Jubilee teased and pulled a face. She would have loved to see more of it.

Jean groaned as Scott suddenly nodded too and pointed with a fork to her. "We never fought like that!"

"Yeah sure!" Hank said aloud and laughed remembering Scott's outburst in the kitchen after coming back from Mystique's cell. "We've seen it lately, haven't we?"

"Okay, besides this single outburst back then…," the man corrected.

"Thank God this wasn't a real fight between the two of you," Moira added while smirking at Kurt and Ororo who didn't even noticed anything.

"What do you mean!" Jean asked her pissed and frowned.

"Well, I think she means that the two of you can heat each other so much up that…," Hank said as he was cut off by the red head who glared at him. "We would never hit each other!" she said outraged. "What makes you even think that?"

Jubilee swallowed her foot and shrugged. "Well, you can express your anger in other ways, you know…," she stated and caused Hank and Scott to look at her. "Ways in which the two of you are well-trained…" Snorting, Jean rolled her eyes and put the fork aside while she shook her head. This was really too much.

"Actually, I meant that I'm rather afraid of some rare objects being thrown around, Jubilee," Moira corrected her and gave her a look.

"Yeah, not them jumping their bones as you always think," Kitty added.

Jean got off her chair and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "What makes you think we would throw things at each other? He would never throw something at me. So would I…" She really wanted to know what else they thought about them.

"Oh, he will! You only have to make him furious enough. Then he doesn't even care that you're head might be in the way," Ororo suddenly mumbled aloud, even if she didn't intended to. Realizing it, she looked up blushed. "Never mind!" she waved off and tried to ignore the looks the others gave her.

XXX

Around 2 p.m. after lunch and after they had managed to make friends with Jean again, Rogue, Ororo, Jubilee and Kitty stood in the kitchen and prepared the food for the party which was supposed to take place in two hours. The girls were happy that they'd managed to make Hank, Kurt and Scott decorating the huge dining room, even if they actually do not wanted to know what the boys had made out of it… Nevertheless, they thought it was better to deal with the food, since only Hank could cook very well. Jubilee and Kitty cut the veggies into pieces and handed them over to Ororo, who was cooking, while Rogue decorated the cake and plates.

"And?" Jubilee asked to break the silence. "What else did you guys plan for later? Sexy table dancers?" She smirked at them while Ororo had to laugh.

"No, no table dancers!" the woman replied and shook her head in amusement. "Maybe we can make some of the boys doing it, what do you think?"

"I wanna see it!" Kitty cheered and grinned. "Can you even imagine Scott dancing on a table!" She frowned when she saw the image in front of her eyes. "Nah…"

Jubilee bumped her softly into the side. "I'd rather like to see someone else doing it!" she smirked. "But without clothes on of course…"

"Don't let Jean hear that!" Ororo warned her and put checked on the soup; still she had to smile.

"Ah, come on! She would love to see him doing that!"

"Who knows," Kitty said. "Go ahead and ask him!"

"Believe me I will!" Jubilee replied and crossed her arms in front of her chest while she grinned devilishly.

Rogue could only shake her head in amusement. "You know what he'd say to you, don't you?" she asked and the girl looked at her.

"Tell us!" Ororo smiled and leant back against the counter watching how Rogue grabbed a carrot and used it as a cigar, before she put her hands to her hips and cocked an eyebrow at Jubilee. "You'd like to see that, girl, don't cha?" she grunted and tried to look as menacingly as possible. "But I ain't gonna show ya, kid! And I'm not sorry for that!" Ororo and Kitty had to laugh aloud, while Jubilee giggled.

"Oh, girl, that ain't right!"

Shrieking, the carrot fell to the ground and Rogue turned around quickly, just to see Logan leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed and cocking an eyebrow at her. "Hi…," she smiled carefully at him in embarrassment. "How're ya doing?" She hated that he could always sneak up on them so easily. She didn't even want to know how red her cheeks were; still she knew that he could definitely hear her strong heartbeat.

Logan shook his head and walked over to the cupboard getting two bottles from it; secretly amused by the small show he had just walked into. Nevertheless, he was good in teasing, too. "I never say _don't cha_, kid!" He prepared the bottles, while Ororo and the other two girls only grinned widely. Rogue cheeks even became redder when he turned and gave her a look, while shaking the bottles. "And I don't sound like a hoarsely grandma either!"

"I'm…I'm sorry…," she stuttered and looked down.

He waved off and walked over to the door hearing the other girls giggle, while Rogue was a picture of misery. "Never mind, but you're a bad actress!" He stopped briefly and gave Jubilee a look who laughed the hardest before winking at Rogue. "Ah, Rogue, ya shouldn't mock the poor old Wolvie! That's already my job, girl!" The women burst out in laughter when he imitated Jubilees voice, who only pouted.

"Ey! This ain't nice, Wolvie!" He laughed and quickly jumped out of the door when she threw a wet cloth at him. "You! I'll get ya for this!" she called after him before she turned to the others. "And you stop laughing!"

"Why? It was funny!" Kitty giggled and wiped away some tears.

"This wasn't even a bit like me!" the other girl protested and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Actually," Ororo said and she, too, had to wipe away the liquid under her eyes while she still smirked. "It was exactly like you."

Pouting, Jubilee went on with her work. "Since when is he a comedian anyway?" Rogue grinned and watched her cutting the vegetables violently. Nevertheless, she also noticed the slight blush on the girl's cheeks…

XXX

Standing at the other site of the room next to Moira and Charles, Logan watched smirking how nearly everyone went crazy about the three babies as if they were completely new to the mansion and no one had seen them before. Shaking his head, he sipped on his beer, before his eyes switched towards Jean who was talking with Ororo. As soon as their eyes met, she looked away. He knew she was still pissed at him… Cocking an eyebrow at Rogue who came over to him with her girl in her arms he put the bottle away. "Hey kid."

"You agreed, remember?" she asked him and he knew instantly what she was talking about. He had promised to take the role as a godfather if Jean got better. "Just wanted to ask if it's still okay for you?" she added insecurely.

"Sure," he shrugged and eyed the baby girl curiously. He hadn't had the chance to look at her more closely before.

Rogue smiled happily at him and handed Isabella over. "Then you're officially her godfather now. Congrats!" She looked over to Bobby who held up a huge stuffed bunny and made a smirking face. Since it was dazzling yellow, it could have only been a gift from Jubilee. Shaking her head, she turned towards Logan again who was still eyeing the small baby in his arms. "Thanks for the clothing by the way!"

"No problem, kid!" he replied and gave her a short smile. His eyes caught Hank who beckoned him to come over. "Hold her for a second, will ya?"

Rogue watched him walking over to the blue mutant. Smirking she waited for his outburst when he would finally noticed the balloons Jubilee had bought. Giving Charles and Moira a big grin, they watched how Hank handed over a package to him. Recognizing it immediately as Hank's and Kitty's present to Logan only, she had to laugh when she saw the big balloon which was connected to the package.

"Jubes!" Logan growled and cocked an eyebrow at the grinning girl, while he pointed at the balloon.

"Just for you, cutie!" she purred. "Hope ya like it!"

"Yeah, whatever!" he grunted and shook his head. "Why is it for me only?" he asked Hank and Kitty with a cocked eyebrow.

Hank smiled at him. "Well, actually…you should have gotten this way earlier, but…you know the story, right?" He hinted towards all the incidents which had happened between Logan's attempt to rescue Jean and now. "We thought you deserved it after everything you've done. Thank Kitty for it. She knew someone who could repair it."

Completely confused know, Logan frowned. "Repair it!" He tried to remember if he'd lost something which was broken… With one last skeptical look at them he began to open the package and suddenly began to smirk happily. "You said you buried it," he said to Hank and shot a look at him.

"Well, I thought you should be punished for taking off just like that, boy," Hank grinned and hugged him. "We know how much you love your leather jacket, so we thought that we should try to repair it."

"Thanks for that!" Logan said happily.

"Thank her. As I said she made it possible."

Kitty smiled at him and blushed slightly when Logan placed a kiss on her cheek. "Thanks, kid!"

"Ah, that's not fair, Wolvie!" Jubilee cried since she'd seen it. "I got those nice balloons for ya."

He cocked an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, and you deserve a good kick in your butt for it!"

Pouting at him she crossed her arms in front of her chest while the others had to laugh.

Kitty in the meanwhile had gotten her package and handed it over to Jean who was still standing next to Ororo.

"So, everything's fine between the two of you again?" Hank asked him and watched the two women getting all excited over the two baby suits. "Well, no you can really call them cubs…"

Logan followed his gaze and smiled when he saw the two small dresses. "Give her time to calm down. Talking won't do before."

His opposite looked at him. "Well, I must say it wasn't really…nice of you to say it like that, you know."

"What else does she expect me to do?" Logan gave back. "We never talked about it before, had fights in between and then all of a sudden she tells me that she already made plans for the wedding."

"You know women. And come on!" Hank said and laid a hand on his shoulder. "I know if she had said tomorrow, you would have done it."

Logan smirked. "Right…"

"Just talk with her."

"Yeah, later."

Walking over to the table and his kids, Logan bent down and watched them closely. For him it still appeared as if they had changed a lot in those two months while he had been unconscious. Sitting down next to them, he looked at the gifts on the table. Scott had given them two books with bed time stories, Ororo and Kitty some clothing, the Professor had surprised them with a car which only belonged to them, while Moira had bought cuddly toys. Not to forget Jubilees surprisingly normal gift: two cuddly toys which looked like wolves. Of course she had to use a large blue and pink ribbon to indicate which wolf belonged to which kid. Rogue, Peter and Bobby on the other hand had bought some blankets and other toys for the twins when they got bigger.

Getting up, he looked across the room towards Jean once more who was still occupied by talking with the others. Switching towards Rogue, he watched her and Bobby unpacking some more gifts. They had already gotten clothing, cuddling toys, books and lot of other stuff for their child. He still couldn't believe that he could add godfather and soon husband to his titles… Burying his hands in his pockets, he watched how Scott came closer and stopped right in front of him.

"Can we talk?" he asked him seriously.

Logan shrugged. "Sure."

"Well…now that you finally got a date," his opposite began and crossed his arms in front of his chest, while Logan watched him skeptically. "Let me tell you one thing, Logan!" Cocking an eyebrow he waited, knowing what would come now. "If you ever hurt her, betray her or do anything else to upset her," Scott said in a low menacing voice ad stepped a bit closer. "I'll kill you. Got that!"

Meeting his opposite's eyes, Logan knew that he meant it. "I wouldn't expect otherwise from ya…"

"Good!" Scott said and buried his hands in his pockets, too. "She's offended. Fix this!"

Smirking, his opposite shook his head. "Thanks for the gifts."

"You're welcome!" Watching him leave, Logan saw how Mystique stood in a corner of the room and was watching the others. Not thinking about her anymore, he turned towards Charles when he cleared his throat to get the attention of the others.

"I was just told by Ororo that the dinner's ready," he told them smiling and took a glass into his hand, waiting for the others to do the same. "But first of all I want to congratulate our two couples for their children. We all wish the best for them and any luck of the world. Cheers!" He raised his glass and the others followed his lead, causing Rogue to blush slightly, while Logan smirked. It didn't take long and they walked over to the table with the food Ororo and the others had cooked…

XXX

Jean and Logan laid in bed after the party was over, still not talking to each other. She had her back to him, while he stared holes into it, knowing that she was still awake, too. Cocking an eyebrow, he grabbed her waist and pulled her close. He was sick of it…

"Why did you say it?" Jean asked him barely audible and starred at the wall.

Logan sighed. "It's okay now, isn't it?"

"No!" she protested and turned around to face him. "No, it's not!"

He supported his head with his free arm and gave her an odd look. "What else is there to discuss!"

"You!"

"Me!" he asked and shook his head questioning. "What's wrong with me!"

Jean sat up a bit and rested against the head of the bed. "Well, clearly you do not want to marry so soon… And I don't want you to do it for me. I want you to do it because you really want it…," she explained without looking at him. Still she knew that he was watching her closely. "You still have time to reconsider it, remember that!"

Growling, Logan let him fell back on the bed and starred at the ceiling. "I already said there's nothing to reconsider, damn it!"

She looked at him. "Then why did you say it! I don't get it!"

He sighed in frustration once more. "I thought you needed a bit more time. Because of the thing with Scott and 'Ro…"

"I thought we're over it…"

He coked an eyebrow at her. "Well, we never talked, did we? And I don't want this to stand between us."

Jean could only shake her head smiling and laid down again, while resting her head on his shoulder. "You could have just said it."

Logan shrugged. "Jean, if it comes to me, I would marry you on the spot if you wanted it," he told her calmly. "If you say tomorrow, it would be tomorrow…"

Still smiling, she stroked over his chest. "So, you still want to talk?"

"Do you?"

"I asked first!"

He pulled her close. "Let's just forget it."

"Fine," she nodded and closed her eyes briefly. "May 10th then?"

Logan bent down to kiss her tenderly. "May 10th then."

Happily smiling at him, before she rested her head on his chest again, she had to think about something. "Can I wish for something for the wedding?" she asked barely audible after a while.

"'f course you can," he replied sleepily and tried to stay awake a bit more. If she wanted something, she would get it. He wondered why she even bothered to ask…

"For everything?"

"Yeah…"

"And you'll definitely do it?"

"Yeah…"

"Promise?"

Logan sighed. "Promise," he said half asleep and hoped she would just ask.

Unseen of him, Jean smiled devilishly and bit her lip briefly. "Then I wish for a proper haircut and that you shave for the wedding!"

Immediately, Logan sat up and stared at her with widened eyes. "What!" was all he could say…

**Okay, that was the last chapter of Changes. Only the Epilogue is following now. Pretty weird for me that only one chapter is left now. : ( Well, I have already written the beginning and ending of it. I only need to write the middle, but I promise: You will enjoy reading the first pages. ; ) They are a bit funnier especially from Logan's view. Thanks for your reviews again. I'm glad that you liked the Prologue. : ) Hope you enjoyed this monster chapter here too. LOL Sorry that it took me so long. I haven't read through everything, because I have to learn for an exam at college from tomorrow on. So, please forgive me if there are words missing like I noticed in chapter 39. _blush_ Well, anyway, still waiting for your wishes. I hope those of you, whose wishes I added in this chapter.**

AudreyLynne: I hope I wrote the imitating scene as you imagined it. ; )

adalyne: Just wait. ; ) You'll see what I mean.

Descena: Well, I made it before the end of September. And the Epilogue should be up until then, too.

Tamara: Thanks for your beta's. I couldn't fulfil your whole whish, so let's say (since I've already written the end of the sequel) I'll come back to it then, okay? ; )


	42. Epilogue

_**Author's note: **Here we go. The very last chapter of Changes. I hope you enjoy this last one and I have to thank you all for your great support! You really are the reason why this story here has so many chapters and why I went on writing. : ) Thank you guys so, so much for it! You're all my heroes! Have fun reading it and see ya soon! _

**Thanks a lot, Kavi for helping me out with the English wedding stuff: )**

**Read my short speech at the end. It contains slight spoiler for the Sequel and tells you briefly what it is about! PLEASE REVIEW!**

**Changes Epilogue**

He looked into the mirror, right into the eyes of his unfamiliar opposite. He turned his head from one side to the other and back; not believing that he was actually looking at his mirror image… He had to remind himself that he did it for her, that it was a unique exception because he wanted her to be completely happy on this special day. Nevertheless, he really had to remind himself of it very, very hard. He did it for her. Only for her. Just to see her smiling even happier than she might would do anyway as he hoped. Sighing, he shook his head and plucked at his weird, short dark hair, which seemed to belong to someone else but him. Which, as he knew it, would look the same as usual on the next morning anyway, if not even earlier. Then his hand went lower, stroking over his smooth, stubble-free cheeks; also knowing that they would just last as long as his usual unruly hair. Again, he had to recall hard who he did this for… Shaking his head, he leant back again, standing straight in front of the large mirror now, while his eyes traced the rest of his unfamiliar features.

If it wasn't because of his adamantium which made his bones unbreakable, he was convinced that his heart would have broken his chest easily by now. He felt scared to death, was nervous like hell, wanted to get drunk or ran off as fast as possible… He wanted to be anywhere but here… And not because he was going to get married! No, it was this weird mirror-image which caused him to freak out. He glanced at his wrist-watch and wanted to vomit instantly. It really was about time… He had to go out there… A strong wish suddenly made its way to his mind. Maybe, just maybe he could grab his fiancée, take the next car or bike and head off to some other place, get married there and return when he looked like his old self again… Yes, that really was a good plan… He only had to sneak through the whole mansion, because she was on the other side of it. So, forget it!

He asked himself why he did it anyway? Sure, she'd wished for it, but since when did he as he was told! He came to the conclusion that she might wanted to punish him for something…but for what! He would never ever say he'd fulfill all her wishes, that he would do everything for her… Never! Well, it wouldn't work anyway. He just loved her too damn much…

Looking out of the window right into the garden, he felt his heart dying just in this very second. He saw them, everyone of them. Hoped to find a few chairs which were still empty, but there was none… Or maybe he could scare Ororo and cause her to let it rain! Nah, bad idea, too. She, too, was probably somewhere in the mansion and…he had to walk through it…

He really noticed how much on top of the world and down in the dumps sounded to him like the exact same thing just now. At least he could easily sum it up to a single word. Which, very strangely, looked exactly like his name… What did he feel like again? Vomiting, right. This explained his whole being perfectly, too. And if he added both together the result was…yeah, his situation. The perfect incarnation of his worst nightmares… Well, not exactly worst, but it came close to it. At least he couldn't recall feeling that bad in the past months. Okay, not included his second (…or already third!) near death experience last year…but this came as strangely as it was very close to it. He should have burned all cameras and any other devices which could possibly remind him of this misery in a few years. Yeah, he should have burned them…at least Jubilee's one…

Glancing at his watch once more, he suddenly felt his knees getting weak. He had to go. Or in fact, he could still just grab…nah, forget it! Slowly, he took his black jacket and put it on. Oh, how he missed his beloved leather jacket now with its holes and scratches and…yeah, he had to go… Walking over to the door, he looked into the mirror again, while his hand rested on the doorknob. He really looked so…ordinary human… Wolverine, roaring inside of him, wanted to kill him for it. That was for sure…

Heaving a more than deep breath, he glanced through the small fissure; making sure that there was no one in close proximity. He could still grab a bag and put it over his head…nah, bad idea, too. Closing the door calmly, he promised himself that she would pay. As soon as she was his wife she would pay for making him feel so miserable. Closing his eyes for a brief moment, he began to walk down the corridor. To his great relief and luck, no one else was left within the mansion; no one besides him and Jean…

"Hey!"

…and someone he apparently had forgotten about. Freezing on the spot, he didn't turn around.

"Who are you? I've never seen you here before!"

He sighed. Thinking about it, he might not even be recognized by someone… Burying his hands in his pockets, he turned around; giving his opposite the most self-assured look he could come up with. At least he hoped so… Suddenly, he winced as a loud shattering sound echoed through the corridor, caused by some plate who had fallen down to the ground. Opening his eyes again, which he'd closed while his sensitive ears had hurt like hell, he cocked an eyebrow at her. "Great, 'Ro! We can still eat from the ground, can't we?" he growled at her, while she still stood there like a shocked looking living sculpture. Frowning, he waved a hand in front of her eyes. "You still there?"

Blinking for a second, she looked down his entire figure. "Oh…my…dear…God…," she gasped.

"Close ya mouth or ya might catch a fly," he grunted while he gave her a look; recalling how much he wanted to run. "What!" he suddenly asked annoyed since she still had this weird look on her face.

Storm shook her head. "Did you look into a mirror, today?"

"Yeah, for the past two hours." Stressed, he watched how she walked around him, scanning him from all sides and from head to toe.

Still with her mouth open in shock, she finally stopped in front of him again. "Good grief…" Letting her eyes curiously wander around his face, she met his eyes. "Do you want to shock her?"

Logan snorted and tilted his head a bit. He gave her a warning look. He knew it was bad but… "I'm not looking _that_ bad, 'Ro!"

"That's the point!" she replied, raising an eyebrow at him.

Wrinkling his brows in confusion, he crossed his arms and looked down on her. "What do you mean? That's the point!"

She sighed. "I mean…the problem is that you're…" She looked for the right words while she drove him nuts by gesticulating nonstop right in front of his face with her hand during her search. "…that you're _not_ not looking good, Logan."

"Eh!" he only made and now it was him who had to stare. Could this day even get worse?

Heaving a deep sigh, she began to tidy up the mess she'd caused because of him. "You'll see. At least as soon as you run into the next woman….or even man…" She smirked, despite her racing heart.

Frustrated Logan shook his head and fled. This was just too much for his anyhow overworking brain right now, which was still looking for possible escape routes. He only wanted this day to be over and over quickly. Or his healing factor to kick into high gear and make him look like before he'd fulfilled the puppy-dog-eyes-wish of his fiancée. Logan growled. He definitely had to stop being so soft and crazy about her that much… Okay, maybe only with the first one, since he actually loved the last one. Reaching the backdoor, which would led him to even more weird staring people, he paused. He could still grab her and make her erase the last five minutes from Ororo's memory… Shaking his head, he buried his right hand in his pocket and did the same with his free hand after he opened the door, before he stepped out into the decorated garden. As soon as he approached the red carper and white stools which were decorated with red and white roses, he really was in hell…

Logan was used to people staring at him, but they'd never done it with such weird looks on their faces. Maybe he should have checked the mirror image once more? Walking past them without looking at anyone, he stopped in front of the priest. At least one person smiled at him happily…or…what had Ororo said again about men! Never mind…, to him it seemed as if everyone was looking at him either shocked, confused or with cocked eyebrows while their mouths nearly touched the ground. Switching his head, he caught the sight of Jubilee, Kitty and Rogue who were staring at him as if he belonged to the Seven Wonders of the World. Logan narrowed his eyes when Jubilee whispered something to her friends. No matter how hard he tried, eavesdropping didn't work.

"Is that really him?" Jubilee asked her friends as silently as she could. Kitty could only nod without stopping to stare at the groom. "Who's for getting rid of Jean? We could kidnap her!" the girl, who was dressed in a yellow dress, added instantly.

Rogue couldn't help but stare, too. Whatsoever, her heart was beating strongly in her chest. She'd never noticed it… Even Mystique, who was sitting in the last row, looked at him curiously.

"How can a woman be so lucky?" Moira said dreamy all of a sudden and caused the girls and some men to look at her, while she had her eyes fixed to the front.

Logan turned towards the priest and gave him an annoyed look. "Do me a favor and get over it quickly, bub!" Turning around again, since he'd seen Hank and Scott approaching, he sent a mental note to Jean; telling her quiet clearly to tell her bridesmaids and witness not to stare at him like idiots. Instead of sending him some soothing words, he heard her giggle in his head and quickly changed the plans he'd made for his revenge on her to the worst.

"How about that?" Hank said stunned and exchanged glances with Scott while they walked down the red carpet in their black suits. "Wonders will never cease, huh?" he added and tried to smirk, but he was too excited to stare at the tensed looking bridegroom. "No offence, Scott, but I can clearly see why she picked him in the end. Who thought that our feral friend is that good looking…" He chuckled, while Scott glared at him.

"So I'm ugly or what?" he snapped and buried his hands in his pockets.

"No, but you're no match to him. Sorry, but even you should see that all woman do not even take notice of us. They are practically eating him up with their stares." He smirked. "And you've seen, 'Ro. All stuttering and blushed."

The other man had to grin slightly. It had definitely been fun to see Ororo not being quiet with it. They'd just came in time to stop her from putting pepper into the sugar dispenser. "Yeah, right," he replied, knowing that his friend still waited for an answer of him. "And yes, without all the hair in his face, he really looks…like an ordinary human being."

Hank laughed. "My friend, you're just incorrigible. Maybe I should shave and cut my hair, too. What do you think?"

Scott shook his head smirking. "Won't do!" He scanned Logan for a brief moment before he looked around a bit. Yeah, it was true. No one took notice of them only for the glimpse of a second… "And yes, I admit it. Judging from a man's point of view, he can be called good-looking. Satisfied?" They walked past Jubilee and the others as the girl suddenly shrieked aloud.

"Girls, we have to go! Hurry up, come on!" Pulling Kitty and Rogue with her, they stormed down the red carpet towards the mansion again, while Marie barely made it to hand over her little daughter to a surprised looking Bobby.

Scott took his seat in the first row next to Moira; giving her a cocked eyebrow as he noticed her look. He'd never been aware of woman becoming that crazy… Well, except with teenage girls in his classes. All this craving and drooling about boy groups was just too much for him sometimes. And now there was a grown up woman right next to him who admired his greatest adversary from afar… Gladly, he touched the handkerchief in his pocket. You never knew when the drooling or crying came…

"Dear boy," Hank said while spreading his arms and laying them on the shoulders of a suspicious looking Logan. "You're always up for a surprise, huh?" His opposite couldn't decide weather to snarl or cry. Why did everyone have to give him such a hard time today? "Nervous?" his best man asked with a huge grin on his face. He was glad that Kurt wanted to film the wedding. Not only because it was the twins first birthday. No, he wanted a copy to tease his friend a bit if he became all mean, grouchy and grumpy because of nothing again.

"Stop mocking me!" Logan growled through clenched teeth; asking himself if hell could even be worse. He looked at his watch for the at least tenth time in two minutes.

Hank had noticed him doing so. "Yeah, definitely nervous," he laughed and his opposite gave him a grim look while the low laugh of his opposite vibrated in his sensitive ears. "And I wasn't mocking you, Logan!" he added soothingly and earned a loud snort.

"'f course not," his opposite grunted and looked into the sunny blue sky. At least the weather still got along with it, thanks to Ororo. Rain or a thunderstorm would have made his day just perfect… But in his case he'd rather expected a snowstorm. Cold, wet and lasting for at least till night. Yeah, this mirrored his mood, too…

Hank had watched him closely. Checking his own dark blue tie, he turned his head and gave the guests a short look. "Why do you think I'm mocking you?" he wanted to know and frowned. "Because you're wearing a suit! I mean what about it? Besides that your fan club would rather like to see you in your leather uniform…"

"What!" Logan replied distracted with a slight trace of anger in his voice. "Are ya blind?" He nodded towards Moira and Scott, who looked at Hank pleadingly; hoping that he would help him to get away from the crazy woman next to him.

"What about them?" the blue mutant asked shrugging. He had no clue what was bothering his opposite so much, besides the fact that he was obviously very nervous.

"They are staring, Furball!" Logan replied in such a tone that it gave Hank the impression he thought the diplomat was brain-dead.

Still, he had to laugh. "Of course they are staring at you, my friend!" He shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't believe that the almighty Wolverine had no idea why everyone was doing it. Well, at least he finally knew what bothered him so much. Suddenly he froze. The look of the man in front of him really told him that he hadn't the slightest idea why… "You really don't know!" Logan coked an eyebrow at him. "Gosh, boy… I thought your ego was larger! Have you looked into a mirror today!"

Heaving a deep sigh, which contained all his despair, frustration and need to run, the groom shook his head, before he looked at the mansion. "Can you guys ask something else today?"

Hank's world was still shattered to pieces. He just had entered a state of shock which would keep him immobile for at least five minutes. This incarnation of manliness…this fine figure of a man really hadn't got the slightest clue. "Logan…you shock me! Honestly!" He watched how the Professor positioned himself at the end of the red carpet. It would begin soon. "I'll give you a hint, my friend." Logan coked an eyebrow at him; waiting for his best man to make his day even worse. "Or lets say two hints and an advice," Hank corrected himself. "First, no one will mock you. Definitely not! They are staring at you in a positive way." His opposite snorted. For him there was nothing positive about his situation. "Second hint! You made such a mess out of 'Ro that she was about to mix up pepper and sugar!"

Logan couldn't help but shake his head. First the plates, now the spices… Maybe he should bring the large wedding cake into safety. God knows what she would do with it. "The advice?" he asked uninterested and saw the back door being opened.

Hank bent forward so that only Logan would hear him. "You should use contraceptives during your wedding night!" He smirked by the threatening, but also confused appearing look the groom gave him. "It will answer your questions why everyone's staring at you, believe me!"

"The contraceptives!" Logan asked in total confusion now and Hank laughed. "No, boy! Your wedding night!" He shook his head in amusement. "Thank God the two of you stay in the room downstairs for it." He winked at him, but his opposite only growled.

XXX

Inside the mansion, someone else was very nervous and didn't even think about hiding it. The red head had already run to the toilet twice; believing that she'd to vomit because her vitals decided to give her a hard time. "Do I really look okay?" she asked her marriage witness and bridesmaids for at least the twentieth time.

"You look gorgeous, Jean," Ororo replied and gave her a warm smile. "Just perfect!"

"God, 'Ro… I'm going to fade," she went on while she walked down the stairs with them.

"No, you won't. And if, he'll catch you!"

Rogue, Kitty and Jubilee exchanged glances while the last two ones took care of the veil. "You sure you want to marry him?" Jubilee asked dryly and Jean could bet that she'd just heard a slight trace of jealousy in her voice.

"Jubes!" Ororo warned her.

The girl returned the look she received from her teacher. "I only mean, if she sees him she…"

"Of course she will marry him, girl!"

"Well, I wasn't the one who mixed up pepper and sugar after seeing him, right?"

Jean stopped abruptly, getting even paler than she already was. "What do you mean _when_ I see him?" She looked at her witness and maid of honor for help. "He's not wearing jeans, a wife beater and his leather jacket, is he?"

The white heard woman had to laugh aloud. "Was this your nightmare this night because the two of you slept in separate rooms?" she asked her jokingly, but became serious when she noticed that her friend was really scared. "He doesn't! I swear!" she assured her honestly

"Then what did she mean?" the despaired bride asked and kept on walking down the stairs. She would have surely suffered from a heart attack if Logan had chosen to wear his casual clothes. Not that he looked bad in them, but not today… Her heart already ached in her chest while her breath couldn't keep up with its speed. She'd never felt so frightened and scared in her entire life… Swallowing hard, while she definitely felt cold sweat on her forehead, she fought against the upcoming sickness again. She could only hope that she wouldn't vomit in front of the priest.

"You alright?" Jean suddenly heard a familiar voice in her head which sounded as scared as she was, but also concerned for her. He was one reason why she felt so miserable since she's felt his chaos of emotions within her.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she soothed him, but of course her state was no secret to him anymore.

Reaching the backdoor, Jean stopped in front of it and closed her eyes for a brief moment, while Ororo used a handkerchief to dry her forehead. Plucking on some red strands, she smiled at her friend encouragingly.

"He won't disappoint you. Believe me!" she assured her and opened the door for her, while she held Lily in her arms. "In fact you'll be quiet surprised…"

Jean wrinkled her brows in confusion. "Tell me the truth, 'Ro!" she pleaded. "How bad is it?"

"So bad that Kitty and I will have a calm night," Jubilee stated and straightened the bridal veil on the ground, before she took her bouquet of colorful May flowers into both hands. Kitty did the same and followed her to the Professor, who smiled at them warmly all dressed up into a dark suit and white shirt with a dark blue tie.

Noticing the despaired look in the brides face, Rogue, who had carried Jack, shook her head, while the boy kept on playing with her hair. "She doesn't mean it!"

"Right," Ororo added. "In fact she meant that they are glad the two of you sleep downstairs."

Jean took another deep breath while she played with her phoenix necklace nervously. "God, I can't do this…"

"Don't say that," her marriage witness reprimanded her. "You can!"

Also Marie smiled at her warmly. "The two of you have waited so long for this day. And if you don't do this, there are enough women out there who would gladly call him their husband." Especially now, she added in her mind.

Jean sighed. "I know, it's just… I'm either going to fade or vomit. I've never been such a mess before…"

Ororo handed Lily over to Marie, who turned around with both kids in her arms to join Hank at the altar. Then, she laid a hand on her friend's shoulder. "You'll do fine, Jean! And afterwards you'll laugh about your nervousness, believe me!" She also turned around and walked towards her opposite, Logan's best man.

Nevertheless, Jean had to close her eyes for a brief moment. Her heart was pounding too strongly for her to walk right now. When she opened her eyes again, she looked down her white and shining wedding dress for which she had looked for weeks. She'd wanted a perfect one and this one was perfect for her. Tight on her chest and waist while it was long, silky and wide downwards. It was also sleeveless. Instead she wore white gloves, which reached up to her elbow and didn't cover her hands completely. They consisted like the upper part of her dress of beautiful embroidery patterns, but weren't completely made of silk like the rest of her dress. Ororo and Jubilee had taken care of her hair, which she wore playfully pinned up. Of course Kitty hadn't forgotten about the four important things: something blue, old, new and borrowed.

Heaving a deep breath once more, she turned her blue and white flowers in her hands. Instead of picking colorful spring flowers like her bridesmaids had, she'd stuck to Logan's favorite ones, which, to her great surprise, were really roses. They definitely had to thank Charles for paying for the wedding. It was his gift to them and she couldn't thank him enough for it. Especially, since he'd agreed to be the one to give her away. In fact he'd been very happy and moved when she's asked him to do it. Taking one last deep breath, Jean finally walked down the stairs towards a smiling Charles Xavier.

"Jean," he smiled and took her hand. "You really look more than beautiful!"

"Thank you," she replied touched and blushed. Smiling she looked down the red carpet. She didn't even hear the music or realized that she walked towards the altar after she'd met _his _eyes.

Now it was Logan who couldn't help but stare. For the first time today he didn't think about the others around him or their weird looks. He only had eyes for this beautiful woman who stared back at him with shocked eyes, while she came closer.

Also Jean didn't notice the guests who were looking at her in awe or the lovely decoration. She only had eyes for him. Her already racing heart it had even gained speed. She couldn't believe that the man in the black suit, white shirt and dark blue tie, with this short dark hair was really her fiancé…

Jean suddenly awoke out of her shock as the Professor stopped next to Logan. Still staring at each other in astonishment, they completely forgot about their surroundings.

Logan saw how she shook her head slightly and scanned his whole body. "You're shocked, aren't ya?" he asked her mentally, while his heart kicked into high gear.

"More than shocked," she honestly replied on the same way. "Look at you, Logan…"

Breaking eye-contact, he looked down on to the ground. "Ya asked for it, Red. So no complaints!"

Her eyes widened suddenly. "No, she replied and shook her head, stepping closer. "I'm definitely not complaining, Logan!"

"You're not?" he asked surprised and cocked and eyebrow at her.

"No!" she said softly and touched his stubble free cheeks. "Didn't you look into a mirror today?"

"Oh, not ya, too, Jeannie," he sighed frustrated and ran a hand through his still, for him, unfamiliar short hair. "I can't hear that question anymore!"

"Well, apparently you didn't," she smiled at him and stroked his cheek gently. "Otherwise you knew what you look like…"

He shrugged. "Tell me," Logan replied playfully through their mental link, hiding his insecurity behind a smirk.

"Good," Jean answered mentally and kept on eyeing him curiously. "More than that. If I wasn't already in love with you, I definitely would be now."

"So that's the answer to all that staring, huh?" he gave back smirking and glanced at the others briefly. Jean shook her head in disbelief but smiled while taking his hand. "Actually I thought you knew how good looking you are, mister…"

He chuckled. "Even that naked?" he asked flirtingly and wobbled his head while meeting her eyes again.

She laughed slightly. "Especially now! You're absolutely more than handsome, honey!"

He nodded playfully and his eyes began to shine. "How much now?" he challenged and gave her a wolfish grin; besides this teasing he still had plans for his revenge on her… Oh, yeah, he would definitely make her pay. No matter how much she kept on buttering him up…

"Now a ten out of ten."

"And before?"

"A 9.5 out of ten," she smiled shyly at him and he couldn't help but smile, too; suppressing his urge to kiss her.

Suddenly he became completely serious and looked at her lovingly, while stroking her hand. "Don't ask me to say somethin' about ya cause I can't sum it up," he told her mentally and it was the naked truth. He just couldn't find a word which could possibly suit her today. She looked more than simply beautiful to him. He'd just fallen in love with her again…and felt Wolverine wanting to show his possessiveness and pride towards his mate. At least he had managed to calm the raging beast within him down again, which had gotten furious because of his nervousness.

"But you like it?" she asked him insecurely.

"Nah, I don't like it," he replied and watched how she broke eye contact; feeling definitely disappointed and offended. "I love it! You just look more than…gorgeous, darlin'."

Jean pulled a face and slapped him gently against the chest. "Oh, don't scare me like that, Logan!" she cried. "I'm already feeling sick enough today."

He shrugged playfully. "It's you who gives me a hell of a day because of that." He pointed towards his head.

"Why? You look extremely handsome," Jean replied smiling lovingly at him. She still had to stare at his surprisingly soft features. "Jubilee even wanted to talk me into not marrying you because you look so damn hot…"

"Damn hot, eh?" he teased her with a wolfish grin. "So, that's why the Furball wants us to use contraceptives."

"What!" she asked and her eyes widened while she gave Hank a shocked look. This one only smirked at them.

Suddenly someone cleared his throat. Both of them turned their heads in surprise to the priest who looked at them and smiled warmly. He'd tried to talk to them at least for three times but the couple had completely forgotten about their surroundings, so he'd given up. "Shall we begin?" he asked them and looked to and fro the bride and groom.

Logan looked at her smirking. "You still have time to reconsider it, darlin'…"

"Forget it!" she teased him back and shook her head. "You're saddled with me now, mister!"

He shrugged playfully. "Can live with that." Nervously, Jean took Charles hand again, who had waited next to her. Once more they exchanged glances before the priest finally spoke up.

"Dearly beloved," he said and raised his hands a bit while looking at the wedding guests. "We are gathered here today to witness the holy matrimony of Logan and Jean." He smiled at the couple in front of him that exchanged loving glances again. "Who gives this woman to this man?" Father McCue asked.

"I do," Charles said and gave Jean a warm smile before he handed her hand over to Logan, who had to be mentally reminded by him that he had to take her hand, since the man was too lost in staring at the woman once more. Meeting the groom's eyes briefly, he gave him a cold look. "Don't you dare, Logan and mess this up!" he warned him mentally, sounding unusual menacingly, and saw the slight shocked expression in his opposite's hazel pools.

"And does this have your blessing?" the priest asked him, not knowing why Logan gave Jean a slight scared look all of a sudden.

Charles smiled at him. "Yes, it does!" With one last warning look at Logan, he turned around and took position next to Ororo who only smiled at him happily.

"Thank you. Take what comfort you may," Father McCue said and looked into his book.

"What's wrong?" Jean asked her opposite mentally and gave him a worried look. She knew that Charles must have said something to him.

"Nothin'," Logan replied on the same way and cleared his throat. "Never knew Chuck can be so…scary…" Smiling at her softly again, he held her hand in his. Drowning in each others eyes, both forgot completely about their surroundings once more. They didn't hear the blessings the priest said, not even the jokes and following laughter of her friends. As suddenly Hank cleared his throat and woke them up again. Blushing, Jean looked at Father McCue who obviously was quiet amused about them. Not knowing what he had said or if he had asked something and waited for their answer, she looked rather lost at Logan. But he hadn't got a clue, too.

"Before I go on, let me asked if there are any here who would object to this union. Let them speak now or forever hold their peace." He looked towards the guest and waited. No one moved and Logan turned relieved towards Jean, as she suddenly widened her eyes and he could hear the guests gasping. Turning his head once more, he immediately saw who the troublemaker was and narrowed his eyes threatening. Ororo, Hank and Charles had their eyes also fixed on the single standing person and exchanged confused glances. Father McCue on the contrary, was surprised. From the beginning to now he had thought that everyone agreed with it. Strengthening the grip on Logan's hand, Jean sent a pleading look to Scott who had his hands buried in his pockets, while he was glaring at Logan, who, of course, returned his look.

"Well," the priest said insecurely and made an inviting gesture to the standing man, who was watched by everyone.

"I just want to say one thing, don't worry," Scott said towards Jean and switched towards Logan again. "And I say this to you, Logan no matter if I already did before! It's just for you so that you remember it!" he added and gave him a look, while the Wolverine within Logan was begging to be allowed to eat him alive. "If you don't treat her right for the rest of your life and show her the respect she deserves…I'll kill you! And I mean this, you hear me? It only has to be the smallest possible indiscretion and I'm on your throat, pal!" Ignoring the looks the others gave him, he took his seat again; telling the priest that he was free to go on.

That one only saw how Logan shook his head snorting and linked glances with the bride again who smiled at him in embarrassment. As soon as Logan smiled, too, again, he knew that did not exist for them once more. Smirking he went on with the ceremony. "Well, as it seems there's no need to ask, but…," he smiled at them. "I'm sorry, I have to!" He winked at the couple and some guest had to laugh since they'd noticed, of course, that both mutants had been again, more or less, in their own dream world for a few moments. Father McCue smiled and looked into the book in his hands for a second before he turned his attention to the couple in front of him once more. "Logan," he addressed the groom who compulsory had to switch his eyes to the man while he still held Jean's hands tightly. "Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love, honor and cherish, to have and to hold for richer and poorer, for sickness and in health, forsaking all others as long as you both shall live?"

"I do," Logan said and gave Jean his best smirk and winked at her, whereupon she looked down smiling in embarrassment, just to look up again when the priest finally addressed her.

"Jean, I ask you the same. Do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love, honor and cherish, to have and to hold for richer and poorer, for sickness and in health, forsaking all others a long as you both shall live?"

She nodded. "I do."

Scott sighed and reached over his handkerchief to Moira who had begun to sniff first and cry afterwards. Sobbing, she leant against his shoulder while he patted her back soothingly. With a raised eyebrow he turned around and narrowed his eyes when he looked into the smirking faces of Bobby and Peter. Shaking his head, he fixed his eyes to the front again; feeling the thick limp in his throat once more by watching Logan holding Jean's hand and turning towards her to make his vow. Looking down he swallowed hard. Even if he'd agreed, it still hurt him to see her marrying Logan. He still had to think about that probably he would be standing next to her now in front of the others, if some things had been different. Looking up, he noticed Moira handing him a new handkerchief. He hadn't even realized that he'd begun to cry…

Logan, in the meanwhile looked down on his hand; trying to remember the vow Jean had liked so much and picked for him. Meeting her emerald eyes again, his heart even gained speed.

"Please, don't tell me that you don't remember it…," Jean groaned mentally with a scared undertone. Well, he couldn't say _yes_, could he?

Smirking all of a sudden, he cleared his throat and met her worried eyes once more. Even if he heard Charles in his head who told him what he had to say, he would do this on his own now. "I, Logan, take you, Jean, to be my wife, my partner in life and my one true love," he began and held in for a brief moment, seeing the relief in her face, which immediately softened. Still, her racing heart wouldn't slow down…she knew he was up to something and this knowledge somehow scared her to death… It had been her stupid idea to agree to those additional vows and now Logan's smirk instantly changed into a completely serious face. She begged every existing higher being to stop him from doing anything stupid just now… Her green eyes drowned in his hazel pools, when he was obviously looking for the right words.

"What is he doing?" Hank asked Ororo nervously, but the crying woman only shrugged. "I thought you're helping him out?" he addressed Charles who had stopped his attempts to help Logan after he had noticed that this one wasn't reacting to it after repeating the first words correctly.

"I think he decided to change plans…," he replied and Hank's eyes grew wide.

"What do you mean…change plans!"

"Say something by himself," Charles shrugged and the two mutants next to him only gasped.

Giving in to the urge to start playing with his tie nervously, Hank felt cold sweat on his forehead. "That's not good… Logan and a speech on his own," he shook his head. This could only go very wrong. He knew how much his friend hated to hold speeches…"Tell him to stop! Tell him immediately to stop, Charles!"

"Too late," Ororo sniffed and blew her nose as she heard the groom speaking up.

"Simply saying the vow isn't enough. You know that. Besides the fact that I've forgotten the lines anyway," Logan said softly and had to swallow hard, while his closest friends only watched him in tension; still believing that this could only go very wrong.

Jean on the contrary was biting her lips and kept on looking at him. She could feel his nervousness and fear; felt her heart nearly breaking her chest.

"Jeannie," he went on and met her eyes again while he stroked her hands gently. "You mean far more to me than words could ever express. I… There are so many things I'd have to thank you for."

She swallowed hard while tears began to gather in her eyes. She couldn't stand to see his honest and deep love for her within his. Not now when her emotions where already running wild. He just overwhelmed her with it. Especially by expressing his feelings so openly in front of all others.

"I mean…look where we've started," he smirked at her briefly before breaking eye contact. He knew he couldn't go back. He had to finish it now. "I came to this place accidentally, thanks to Rogue. Woke up on a lab table just to see…you." She smiled and looked down, remembered how he had attacked her and nearly choked her. "And you haunted me from then on. Because of you I wanted to be more than I was. Become more than the thing everyone saw in me. And you did it. You always saw more in me than just a thing," he went on calmly. "You showed me what family means, what's really important in life… You showed me what life can be,…just to lose your own twice."

Swallowing hard, Jean took a deep breath while she tried to calm her racing heart. She desperately tried not to start crying. If she did, she would never be able to make her own vow properly. Blinking, she looked aside and of course right into Ororo's tear-stained face. Quickly, Jean broke eye-contact again, but it was already too late. She was just too moved by his honest words and had to sob.

Logan saw her tears and heaved a deep breath. "I want to thank you. Not only for making a better person out of me, also for just being my friend and partner. For saving me…and for giving me the opportunity to finally have a home and family…" Hearing her heavy sobs, he gently wiped away her tears, just to see new ones following instantly. He could also smell the salty liquid on Ororo's, Rogue's, Moira's and some other faces, which gave him an even harder time to hold back his own. Making her look at him, he swallowed hard before he smiled at her softly. "I love you, darlin'. You and the kids, more than anything else. And if I'll ever disappoint you," he nodded towards Scott who had trouble to calm the crying Moira. "Cyke can gladly kill me."

Smiling because of the honest love she saw in his eyes, Jean couldn't help but embrace him tightly. Sobbing she listened to his calming words, while he stroked over her back gently. Heaving another deep sigh, she gladly took the handkerchief he offered her since his attempts to dry her tears only made it worse. Pausing for a moment, Jean took his hands into hers again and cleared her throat. Still feeling the liquid wetting her cheeks, she looked up at him again, ready for her own vow. At least she hoped so. He had just surprised her too much by his honesty. Touched and moved her so much with his words that she had completely forgotten about her selected vow, too. Now it was her turn to come up with something.

Holding back another sob, she swallowed once more. "I, Jean, take you, Logan, to be my husband, my constant friend, my…faithful partner and love…from this day forward." She broke off and took another deep breath, while the lump in her throat became even thicker. She didn't know what to say; looked for the right words which could possible suit her feelings for him. Meeting his loving eyes, he smiled at her encouragingly and squeezed her hands a bit.

"I…," she shook her head and bit her lip. "I honestly don't know what to say." She felt his hand wiping away her tears again. "I have to thank you too," Jean began and was suddenly completely serious. "Because…without you I wouldn't be here today."

He looked down when he remembered how she had tried to kill herself after she had been back a few days. It still sent cold shivers down his spine if he only thought about it. If he had returned to his room only seconds later…he didn't even dare to imagine…

"You gave me so much strength back then. Without you I…wouldn't have been able to go through it." Blinking, she sent more tears down her cheeks. The look of him told her that he knew exactly what she was talking about. "Even after everything I have done…you were just there. On my side and helped me…without asking for anything in return." Her voice broke and she had to sob heavily.

Logan couldn't help that his eyes became steadily wetter. Gently he stroked her cheeks, while he heard single sniffles.

She sighed. "And this and every moment we share…show me how…mistaken others are to hastily judge you." Hearing her sob again, Logan looked down. "You always make me laugh again, when I'm lost. Give me hope and strength even if you have nothing left for yourself. And I have to thank you for this." She touched his cheek gently and looked into his wet eyes smiling; not caring that her voice was breaking constantly while she was talking. She knew instantly that she was giving him a hard time. A good and happy, but emotionally very hard time. "If I'm proud of anything in my life…then it is being on your side and of our children. And I know that you'll never disappoint me…," she added swallowing hard while it was her turn now to wipe away his tears. "I love you, too. You and the twins."

Logan smiled slightly and got lost in her eyes again, while she had to sob hard again. Father McCue handed him another handkerchief, which he gladly accepted. Using it to dry her tears again, he suppressed his urge to just grab and kiss her. Inner, Jean already cursed the priest for wanting them to make a vow together at the end of their own ones. She would definitely not survive this without losing it again.

Watching how Father McCue turned his book towards them, she took notice of the marked lines in it. Exchanging glances with Logan, who only nodded, while he, too, was fighting with his inner turmoil again, both began to read the lines aloud. "Entreat me not to leave you, or to return from following after you. For where you go, I will go and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. And where you die, I will die and there I will be buried. May the Lord do with me and more if anything but death parts you from me," they finished their vows and looked at each other again. Sighing, he had to smirk since he had to wipe away some more tears from her cheeks again.

"May I have the rings, please?" the priest asked and looked towards the witnesses.

Ororo quickly ran a hand through her tears-strained face and got up. Stopping a few meters from the smiling couple, she helped Jack and Lily to their feet. "Come on," she said invitingly and pushed them gently. "Go to your mommy and daddy." Looking at her with big dark eyes, Jack still stood on the same spot while his sister slowly stumbled to the front. "Come on, we practiced this," the woman said and pointed to the priest.

Seeing that his daddy sank to his knees, Jack finally began to move, just to feel down on his knees in the next second. While a loud, touched sounding _oh_ echoed through the benches; mainly said by smiling girls who bent forward to watch the little boy getting up to his feet again and stumbling towards his parents; holding up a small cushion with his mommy's ring attached to it.

Sobbing, while laughing happily, Jean bent down after Lily had finally reached her and took the counterpart of what her brothers was carrying out of her hands. After kissing her girl tenderly, she watched how Lily took hold of her father's legs, who just took the cushion out of Jack's hands. Hearing his son's loud protest, who clung to his other leg and already began to made a face, Logan quickly took the ring from it. He handed the small cushion back to the boy and watched him smiling again. Logan shook his head smirking, finally paying attention to the priest once more, who smiled down on the twins before taking the rings of the couple.

"Gosh, I wish I was one of the kids now," Jubilee sobbed and stole Kitty's last handkerchief to blow her nose in it. Her friend could only shake her head. Nevertheless, she, too, had to wipe away some tears. Logan's and Jean's vows had nearly made everyone cry in their surrounding and especially her two friends had been affected by it. "Life's so unfair!" the girl in the yellow dress protested and pouted.

"He's too old for you anyway," Kitty told her bluntly and straightened her blue dress.

"The coolest and sexiest teacher in this place and who gets him!" Shaking her head, she glared at Jean briefly while she heard Kitty snorting. "What do you think?" Jubilee asked and turned towards the girl in the green dress next to her, who was even more crying than she already did.

"I'm happy if he's happy," Rogue only said and gave her a sad smile.

"Ah, come on! You're lying!" her friend said and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You held me back otherwise I would have objected to it, too! Scott's a softie. He should have just pulled her away from him! Or we should have kidnapped her! I bet Mrs. McTaggert would have gladly helped us…"

"Yeah," Kitty nodded and watched how the priest blessed the rings. "And a furious Wolverine would have bitten your heads off!"

"Whatever…", Jubilee only said and fixed her eyes to the front again.

"Rings are a symbol of love never ending, for there is no end and no beginning on a ring, or of true love. May God bless these rings, that they who wear them may live in your peace and continue in your favor," Father McCue said and turned towards Logan giving him the ring for Jean and told him what he had to say. Taking her left hand, this one smiled at her softly. "With this ring, I thee wed. This ring is a sign of my vow, and with all that I have, I honor you," he said and slipped on the ring above her engagement ring on her finger. Jean did the same and smiled at him softly, before they turned towards the priest again who had spoken up once more.

"Now that Logan and Jean have given themselves to each other by solemn vows and by giving and receiving the rings, I announce to you that they are husband and wife. Those, whom the gods have joined together, let no one put asunder." He looked at the groom smiling who was clearly in his own world again. "You may now kiss…," Father McCue began, but Logan had already pulled his wife close and kissed her tenderly. "…the bride," the priest finished his sentence and shook his head smirking. He knew the couple had already forgotten about him and that he was nothing more that just air right now. They probably didn't even notice the cheers of their friends who had gotten up from their stools…

Wrapping her arms around his neck, while he pulled her closer, Jean deepened the kiss before she felt how he gently wiped away her tears again. Stroking her cheek, Logan looked at her lovingly while she leant into his touch. "I love you," he whispered softly and made her smile even wider.

"I love you, too," Jean replied honestly and he kissed her once more before looking at his children who had already joined their godmother again, who was sobbing unstoppable. Turning around, Jean took the arm he offered her and walked down the carpet on his side smiling.

After receiving the congratulations from their friends, of whom most shed even more tears while hugging them, they'd finally walked over to another part of the garden. This was also lovely decorated with flowers and other festive things. Round white tables with red and white roses and stool of the same color were all over the place, while a huge buffet had been put up on the left side. The picture was rounded down by the head which consisted of a longish table, decorated in the same color than the rest, which was for the newly-weds, the best man, witness and Charles only.

"Ororo," Hank said and looked at the scenery next to the pool. "You and the girls really did a good job. This is just fantastic!"

Jokingly, she made a curtsey in her silky, light-grayish shining dress, which suited her well. "Thanks."

"This really looks great," Jean nodded and couldn't get enough from looking around. "Thank you so much for it!" She hugged her friend tightly and smiled at her happily.

"So, where's your husband?" Hank asked and looked for the groom who was nowhere to be seen. "Just married and already gone? Does this mean I can take my chances?" he asked Jean jokingly and smirked at her while she could only laugh.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Hank, but he'd doing his father duties and changes Jack's diaper." She smiled at him and shrugged playfully.

"Too bad," he replied. "But I must admit, it was a great surprise to see him today. You really tamed him!"

"No, I didn't." Jean shook her head.

Hank could only shrug. "Well, I hear a lot about him before I came here, Jean. That's why I wasn't so fond of him first."

"You weren't only not fond of him! The two of you nearly bit your heads off," Ororo corrected him. "It was the first time I heard you snarling at someone again after a very long time!"

"Well, what I mean is," the man went on. "Since he's with you, he completely changed. That's why I think you tamed him. You pushed the animal back and brought the man to the surface. And you have to admit that he would have never voluntarily held a speech like that two year ago!"

Ororo nodded and looked into distance. "Yeah, he quiet surprised me, too. The two of you are the reason why I ran out of handkerchiefs!" She winked at Jean who smiled and looked at the scenery again.

"He quiet surprised me, too…," she said lost in thoughts while her heart began to race again.

"But I knew Scott would do it!" the other woman added. "Somehow I really knew it…"

Hank laughed and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry," he winked. "My speech will be better!"

"I hope so," someone suddenly grunted behind them and turned in surprise just to see Logan walking past him with Jack on his arm. Kissing his wife tenderly, his eyes scanned the area briefly, before he saw Jean stroking over her sons unruly hair. "Forget it! I already tried." Logan smiled and pulled her close with his free hand. "Where's Lily?"

Ororo nodded over to Charles who had the girl on his lap and was talking to Scott and Moira. "Come on, let's sit down!" she suggested and began to walk over to the table.

It didn't take long until everyone finally had sat down and a chatting noise took over. The couple of the day had eyes only for themselves again, while Hank and Ororo could only smirk about it. Her eyes briefly switched over to Kurt who had given the camera to Jubilee and Kitty, since both girls had kept in begging for it. The weather witch instantly knew that both girls would probably comment on nearly everything the camera caught. Shaking her head, she looked at Hank who had bumped her gently into the side, trying to get her attention.

"If you don't mind, you could lend me a helping hand. Our friend here has to do a speech and he doesn't react to my attempts…"

Ororo briefly bent forwards and giggled. "I'll try!" she assured him and cleared her throat loudly. "Ehm, Logan?" she asked but he didn't react and kissed Jean instead. "Would you stop your mental flirting thingy and give me, let's say, a second of your attention, please?"

Hank smirked and crossed his arms. "What do you think I tried before! I already said his jacket was on fire… And nothing!"

Ororo bit her lip as her eyes caught Jubilee. She grinned. "Jubes? Give Kitty the camera for a second and come over here, girl!"

Frowning, the young woman obeyed and came closer. "What is it? We were just about to interview Scott…"

"Could you try to get his attention?"

"We practically feel lost here," Hank added.

Jubilee rolled up her imaginery sleeves and grinned. "No problem! Let the master handle this!" With her best innocent look, she walked over to the groom who was occupied with smirking at Jean. "Wolvie…?" she purred and waited. Cocking an eyebrow, she looked at Ororo and Hank who could only grin. "Hey, mister, I'm talking to ya," the girl tried once more and nudged him. She could have sworn that Jean had looked at her very briefly. "Scott is about to set your leather jacket on fire. He already drowned your bike in the pool." Crossing her arms in front of her chest, she sighed. "The Professor wants ya to sing and dance on a table…? Hello! Someone there!" Hearing Ororo giggle even louder, she pouted. "You're suddenly brain-dead or something!" All of a sudden, Lily, who had played with her brother in front of the table with her soft toy wolf, began to cry heavily. Breaking eye contact with Jean immediately, Logan got up and kneeled down beside her. "Hey sweetheart," he said softly and pulled her up.

"What's wrong?" Jean asked worriedly and got up, since the girl was nearly shouting at the top of her voice.

"Dunno…," he replied and checked if the girl, who clung to him, had any injuries. "Did he step on your hand, honey?"

"Oh I don't believe that!" Jubilee cried. "We're talking to ya for hours and nothing happens. And she starts crying and you're suddenly alive again…" Shaking her head, she crossed her arms.

Giving her a deadly look, Logan sat down on the stool again. "I heard ya, Jubes!"

"Yeah, sure!" The girl nodded cynically. "I noticed it! Never had such a good conversation!"

"Calm down, will ya!" he shot back after he'd finally managed to soothe his girl and heard only single sobs following. "I'll do this damn speech in a second, okay?" Kissing Lily's cheek, he wiped away her tears gently. "You okay, pumpkin?"

"Softie," Jubilee teased him and joined Kitty again who had already begun to interview an annoyed looking Scott.

"I should probably drown her, what do you think?" Logan asked Jean and she giggled before she took her daughter into her arms. "So, Furball, what do you want me to say?"

Hank smirked. "It's not nice to ignore us that much, my friend," he said and shook his head grinning. "But with her on your side…I think I can forgive you your daydreams!"

"Thanks," his opposite said jokingly.

"Just say something nice to your guest, okay?"

Groaning, Logan looked at Jean who had just put Lily down to the ground again. "Can't you do it?" he pleaded.

"Ah, ah!" Ororo made and shook her head. "Husband duties, Logan! You've got to do it." She heard him sigh in frustration. "Come on, you've already proven that you can do it…"

"Yeah…right," he grunted and gave Jean a look, whereupon she grinned. "Oh, you ain't making that face later anymore, darlin'," he warned her. "I don't have to remind ya that you have t'dance, right?" Smirking, he watched his wife getting paler. "I'll be nice and promise ya t'give ya my best grin by then, 'kay?"

Swallowing, Jean looked at Hank and Ororo for help. She'd really tried to learn how to dance, but it hadn't helped a lot. Not even with Scott's, Hank's and Kurt's help. Still, she had doubts that he was a good dancer. At least, she hoped so…

Getting up, Logan waited for Hank to get the attention of the guest. After taking a spoon and beating it against a glass, one after the next turned their head to look at the groom, who had one hand buried in his pocket while the other scratched the back of his head. "Right…," he said and lowered his gaze. He made a mental note that this was definitely the last time he would do it. At least for today. He really began to hate being the main attraction. "Ehm…thank you all for coming," Logan said after a while and hoped that Jean would help him out mentally, but she didn't. Cocking an eyebrow at her, she only shrugged while he had no idea what to say. Clearing his throat, he caught the sight of Charles. "Well, thanks to Chuck for making this possible…and to 'Ro and the others for their help." He paused briefly and thought about what else he could possibly say. "Just enjoy yourself, guys!" Quickly, he sat down again, while Hank got up to hold his speech since it was tradition that someone else said something about the couple. And both knew instantly that most of it would become very embarrassing for them… Therefore, Jean quickly took Logan's hand and gave him a frightened look. Thinking about the jokes Hank and Scott loved to do about them, she didn't even dare to imagine what his speech contained.

"Well, what can I say about this lovely couple over there?" Hank said and gave them a wide grin. Yeah, it would definitely become very embarrassing… "First of all, I was totally shocked earlier. I bet you all were! Going down the red carpet and thinking of nothing special…and what had my eyes to see?" he asked and gave Logan, who was watching him closely but also warningly, an amused look. "Him! Wonders really never cease, I thought. I bet his fan club just got a few new members, eh?" He smirked towards Jubilee who instantly gave Moira a grim look. Shaking his head, Hank looked briefly down. "But what I actually wanted to say, and what we all have seen today, is how much the two here truly love each other. Funny thing only is," he added and had to smirk. "…how easily they can also bite each others heads off, which is always a fun to watch, believe me!" Jean gave Logan a shy smile who heard the giggles of some people. "Nevertheless, as this beautiful bride here has already said before, I have to admit that I was one of those who judged her husband hastily and I am deeply sorry for that, Logan." He looked at the groom but this one only waved off. "And even if we would have loved to tear each others heads off when we first met, I got to know you and I can say that I have never met someone I'd call more proudly my friend than you. The things you did for your wife when she surprisingly came back, the strength and love you have given her voluntarily and how much you have fought against every one of us, who had met her with hostility back then… All this proves how mistaken others are." Jean smiled at him thankfully before she gave Logan a loving look and bent forward to kiss him softly. "Before you guys drift off into your own world again," Hank continued and some had to giggle and laugh again. "…just let me finish, okay?" He winked at them.

"Depends on if you hurry up, Furball," Logan replied and pulled Jean closer.

"My friend, you have your girl for the whole night, so…jus be patient and have fun later!"

The groom gave his wife a wolfish grin. "You bet," he said huskily more to himself and sent a chill down her spine.

Hank could only shake his head laughing. "Yeah, I believe that. We know the two of you can't keep away from each other. Speaking of which," he said and bent a bit forward to look at the playing children, while Jean cheeks had become more than red and Logan only chuckled because of it. "…of course it is not only a big day for our love-crazed couple, but also for those two cuties here." He smiled at them. "We haven't come together to celebrate a wedding, only, but also the twins first birthday. Jean really did a good job in picking the day. So, Logan…there's no way you can talk yourself out of it if you ever forget your wedding anniversary! Mark my words, boy!"

Logan shook his head self-assured. "Won't happen, Furball!"

His opposite raised a hand and shook his head. "We've seen it during the ceremony, haven't we?"

The groom shrugged and winked at Jean. "She can slap me if I'll ever forget it."

"I'll remind you of it!" she replied and smirked at him.

"Well, whatever," Hank said and raised his glass, while the other guests got up and did the same. "We all wish only the best for the two of you and your kids. That you'll always be happy with each other and have many, many years together!" he said towards Logan and Jean who looked at each other lovingly again. Because of that, they didn't see Hank's big grin, which he gave the guests. "And since the groom had already announced it and of course because we know these crazy love-birds over here," he winked at them while Jean gave him a blank look. She knew he was up to something. "I bet we can expect a few more little Wolverine's in the future, huh?"

"A _few_ more!" Logan asked aloud and gave his wife a look, while his glass slowly sank down. "Are you nuts!" Hank only winked at him and sat down again as the Professor spoke up.

"I also want to wish you all the best of the world and that you'll always be as happy as you are now!" he smiled at them. "I am really proud of you… Of both of you!"

Jean looked onto her hands smiling and played with her two rings as suddenly Ororo reached over a large knife. "Come on, it's your turn to cut the wedding cake first!"

Later the day, while everyone stood in small groups and talked, Scott took Jean away from the others towards the pond and kept on checking if anyone was following them. Frowning, she gave him a suspicious look. "What is this?" she finally asked after they'd arrived at their target.

"Nothing," he smiled. "Just wanted to talk to you alone."

She returned the smile and sat down on the edge while looking into the water. "You really scared me during the ceremony, do you know that?"

Scott laughed and buried his hands in his pockets. "I rather hope that I scared him. Because I mean it."

"I know." In thoughts she turned her head.

"As long as you're happy, I am happy, too," he said softly and sat down next to her.

Jean smiled at him a bit sadly and squeezed his hand. "Thank you…" He returned the gesture as suddenly Hank appeared. Giving them a questioning look, Jean suddenly noticed that Scott was smirking at her. "Oh no…, you're not doing this…"

He shrugged, while he grabbed her left and Hank her right arm. "Yep, I think we do!"

Smirking at Charles, Logan waited until the man had reached him. "You know, Chuck," he said and sipped on his drink. "…you can't hide this evil side behind this nice smile of yours!"

The Professor stopped next to him and folded his hands. "I just wanted to make myself clear, Logan."

The groom chuckled. "Yeah, you were successful with that."

Still smiling, Charles took a look around, watching the students having fun at the pool while the grown-ups were talking to each other. "I know that she and your children are the most important things in your life, Logan," he continued and noticed that he was looking down on him; paying attention to every word. "Still,…you have to understand that Jean is like a daughter for me. So, you might understand that a father can become over-protective sometimes." He winked at him while Logan smirked and nodded.

"Yeah."

"I am really happy for the two of you. After everything that happens, you deserve to be happy together."

Sipping on his drink again, the groom watched Kitty and Jubilee giggling. "Thank you," he suddenly said completely seriously and Charles looked up at him. "Not only for this. For everything."

The Professor shook his head and smiled at him. "I have to thank you," he replied honestly and looked for the right words. "You saved her. You gave her a reason to live again and… I am really happy and lucky, I suppose, to have you here, Logan. And I am very proud of you for everything you have achieved during your time here." The addressed looked down smirking. "You were a loner and lonely when you came here. Now you are a husband and father with many friends who look up at you. You can be truly proud of you!"

He chuckled. "But I don't have to call ya dad now, Chuck, do I?"

Charles laughed. "Feel free to use your nicknames for me, Logan."

"Where is she by the way?" The groom asked all of a sudden, since he couldn't see his wife anywhere and felt that Wolverine was pretty pissed because of it. "Have you seen her?"

"No, but I think you should probably ask your best man," Charles replied smiling and moved towards Ororo. "Good luck!"

Cocking an eyebrow, Logan watched him leaving. He had no clue what the Professor had just meant. Scanning the area, he suddenly noticed that Hank and Scott had also disappeared from the scenery. It was then that it hit him. "No…," he growled and put his glass away, before he walked over to Ororo. "Hey, this ain't what I think it is, right?" he asked her and she grinned. "'Ro! Your not going to tell me that those two figures of fun have kidnapped her, do you!"

Giggling she handed him an envelope and watched amused when he cocked an eyebrow at her. "You've got to be kidding!" he growled and pulled it out of her hands snorting. Opening it, he glared at her, while she could only grin wider. Shaking his head, he walked over to the table and emptied the content on it. Lucky for it, it only consisted of many small pieces of paper. "A puzzle!" he asked her growling and she raised a challenging eyebrow at her.

"Well, you've got to do a bit more than growling and cursing, mister!" she smirked. "So, hurry up. "You only have 15 minutes to get her back!"

He crossed his arms in front of his chest and gave her the same look. "And what if I don't make it?"

She shrugged playfully. "You'll see! But if I were you, you better hurry!" She winked at him, just to sit down on a stool to watch him putting the puzzle together. "Come on, only 14 minutes left!"

Snorting, he took the pieces into his hand and quickly tried to solve it. After three minutes, he finally had made it and read through the printed verse. Just to cock an eyebrow at her again. "_If you want to get her back, just go to the place where the two of you first met_! Which rhyme genius had written this crap!"

Ororo giggled. "Come on, run off! 10 minutes left and you still have a lot of work to you!"

Groaning, he turned around and headed for the infirmary. Reaching it panting, Logan quickly looked around. He had awoken on the table on the right as far as he remembered. Walking over to it, there was nothing to be seen. Frowning, his eyes scanned the area, but couldn't find another hint which had been left for him. When his eyes reached the table again, he smirked. Sinking down on his knees, he saw that another envelope was hidden underneath it. Opening it quickly, he thanked God that it wasn't a puzzle again. Nevertheless, he had to wrinkle his brows. _Find the colorful dead mammals…_ If he would get the mastermind behind this, he would definitely punish him…or her…

Reading again through the lines he leant against the table thinking. He had no clue what they wanted him to look for… Walking out of the infirmary, while his eyes stared at the lines, he pushed the button to the elevator. Stepping into it, his hands rested on the wall. Colorful dead mammals… He could almost feel his brain going into high gear. He had seen many things, but never a… Snorting, Logan pushed the button for the second floor. It didn't take long and he stood in the twins' room; looking around until his eyes had found the blue and green carebears he had bought for them before they were born. Turning them around, he found another note attached to it. He briefly checked his watch. He still had enough time. _To be or not to be…or rather: to let something burn or to not hesitate! _Yeah, he would definitely punish the genius behind all this! Shaking his head, he could only smirk. He still remembered when Jean had cooked something for him and they had spent the time waiting for the dinner to get ready with some…joyful things… Heading down to the kitchen, Logan's eyes quickly scanned the area. There was no other hint on the counter, on the fridge, on the stools… Turning his head constantly, while his eyes kept on looking for another hint, he even looked into the fridge and oven. Sighing, he leant against the counter. Why did he do this anyway? He wasn't afraid of what they might do to him if he wouldn't make it… Or would they do something funny to her! Shaking his head, Logan rested his eyes on the door while his brain was thinking… Jubilee had caught him kissing Jean on the counter… After this, he had been too heated up to act as if nothing had happened before, he had grabbed her and… Where had they gone, too? Narrowing his eyes, he stepped out of the room and looked down the corridor to the left. No, they hadn't used any office or the toilet. Turning his head, his eyes caught the store-room. Grinning, he opened the door and put the light on. Just to be greeted by a painted sign. "Jubes…," he grunted and shook his head. He knew she was part of this plot. Still, he cursed himself that he hadn't paid attention on if she had really left back then. Ignoring her protest that she had eaten some stuff which had been stored in the room back then after the couple had misused it, he quickly turned his eyes towards the important message and sighed once more. He only had 4 minutes left and this one was a true riddle for him… Crossing his arms, he coked an eyebrow at it, while his mind kicked into high gear once more.

_If four eyes saw what the rest didn't, and two times two did, too, by doing something forbidden… Where would you go if you had been part of the two times two? Just a hint: A bird saw it, too!_

Looking at his watch, he noticed that he was running out of time. Frowning, he ran a hand through his hair. He really was lost here. "Bird?" he mumbled and couldn't remember that he had ever been somewhere where a bird was. Of course in Canada or in the wood, but this couldn't be the solution. Narrowing his eyes, he mentally cut the sentences into pieces. He got the part that he had been with someone somewhere and that the two of them had did something which was forbidden…but he the rest wasn't good at all to him… Closing his eyes, Logan thought hard about it. Had he ever been somewhere with Jean and there was a bird? Cocking an eyebrow all of a sudden, he groaned. Of course he had! Turning around, he briefly glanced at his watch and ran for the elevator first, then for the hangar. Looking at the Blackbird he saw that the hatch was opened. Not thinking twice, he walked up the ramp.

"Boy, that really was in the last second," Hank smirked and took the headset into his hand. "Scott, he made it! Just get her back on dry ground." Crossing his arms in front of his chest, Logan gave him his best pissed look. "What?" his opposite asked innocently. "That was fun, wasn't it?" Grinning, he laid a hand on the groom's shoulder and walked back with him towards the elevator. "To be honest, I didn't believe that you would make it. Especially with the last one!"

"What where you about to do, eh?" Logan asked him instead and stepped out of the elevator.

"Oh, five seconds later and your beautiful wife would have landed in the pool," Hank shrugged playfully. "So, good for you to save her!"

"I thought you would do something to me," Logan grunted and buried his hands in his pockets.

"Nah," Hank waved off. "That wouldn't be of any fun. First, the girls would have killed us, except we would have gotten your shirt off, of course. And second, we knew that we couldn't scare you. So, doing something to Jean was the better opportunity!" He winked.

Shaking his head, Logan approached the party again and saw Jean standing next to the pool. "What did you plan next? Hide and Seek?"

The blue mutant laughed. "Nope, now you can scare her again, because it's time to dance. Make sure you grab her first!"

Smirking, Logan gave him a short look. "You can be sure of it."

"What I actually meant was, besides that Jean already saved a dance for Scott and me, that there are plenty of girls who want to dance with you, my friend. Jubilee included!"

"Thank God my bones can't break, eh?" Chuckling, both men stopped next to the others, while Jean already stood in the middle of an empty dance floor; looking rather frightened at her husband. Smirking, Logan stepped closer and kissed her.

"Thank God you made it," she gasped and gave Scott a look. "He kept on scaring me by counting from ten backwards several times…" Wrapping her arms around his neck, he pulled her close, before he watched hoe Hank said something to Scott and both men grinned. Still looking at him scared, she looked at him pleadingly. "I can't do this… I tried, but I couldn't learn it…"

Logan shrugged smiling. "You hadn't had good teachers then, darlin'."

"Well, it's no time left to practice it, is it?" she gave back and let go off him while he heard her heart racing in her chest; being completely aware that everyone was watching them.

"I'll do something and you just read my mind, okay?" he suddenly said, grabbed her and pulled her into a deep kiss. Being completely surprised first, Jean closed her eyes and concentrated hard on his thoughts.

"Hey, I thought they were supposed to dance? Not to smootch," Jubilee protested and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Bobby touched Rogue's hand briefly. "Can you dance?" he asked her calmly and met her eyes.

She shrugged. "Not really."

"Me neither," he replied before he smiled. "Wanna try it still?"

She smiled at him. "Sure!"

Letting go of Jean, Logan smirked at her. "Got it?"

She looked down briefly. "I think so," she replied insecurely while he got into position and put one hand on her back while he held the other in his.

"Just read my mind. I'll start slow, okay?" he winked at her and heard how slow music suddenly echoed through the garden. "Ready?" Jean nodded despite her still racing heard and put her free hand to his arm. Smiling at her encouragingly, Logan slowly began to dance; waited for her to adjust to his movements. Having trouble first, she concentrated on his advises which he sent her mentally. Smiling, Jean soon switched her eyes from the ground to his and gave him another loving look.

"Hey," Hank said and bent forward a bit. "How come she can dance all of a sudden?"

"Don't ask me?" Scott shrugged, being surprised, too. "Kurt didn't practice with her before that either…"

"Oh, this cunning old devil!" the diplomat suddenly cursed smiling and shook his head.

"What?" the man with the glasses demanded to know.

"He tricked us!" Hank said and nodded towards Logan who smirked down on his wife happily.

"How?"

"The kiss was only show. He told her mentally what to do and I bet he still does."

Scott raised an eyebrow. "Damn. And I hoped that she would step on his feet…"

Finishing the dance, Logan pulled Jean close once more and kissed her tenderly. "Was it so bad?" he asked her playfully and wobbled his head.

She smiled blushing and played with his collar. "No," she admitted barely audible. "Never thought that you're such a good dancer."

He grinned. "Must have been earlier in my life."

She kissed him once more, before Scott nudged her gently. "My turn now," he said and offered her his hand, while Ororo wanted to dance with Logan.

"You told her mentally, didn't you?" she asked him while they moved over the dance floor and he only smirked. "I knew it! Hank and Scott were pretty stunned."

Logan shrugged jokingly. "Cyke wanted her to step on my foot. Couldn't let that happen."

She giggled before she smiled at him. "I'm happy for you."

"And I'm happy that you didn't touch the cake, he replied playfully.

"Oh, they told you, didn't they?" she cried and shot a deadly look at Hank who was dancing with Jean now. "It was your fault, Logan. You shocked everyone here today!"

He suddenly stopped and reached her hand over to someone. Kissing her cheek briefly, he winked at her and watched amused when she blushed as Kurt took her hand to dance with her.

Looking at Rogue and Bobby who more or less tried to dance with each other, while they stepped on each others feet, someone suddenly tapped on his shoulder. Turning around, he looked right into Moira's blushed face.

"Ehm,…I wondered if you. Well, if you would dance with me," she asked stuttering and he had to smirk. Offering her his hand, he led her to the dance floor where many couples were dancing with each other by now. Laying a hand on her back he began to move, while she gave him a rather weird look. "You know," Moira began and looked quickly away when their eyes met. "You really look good."

He chuckled. "Yeah, my wife said so…" He smiled at Jean who was watching him right now, while Kitty was filming with Jubes next to her to comment on it. He really didn't want to know what they had made of the film…

The woman in his arms looked at him briefly while they kept on dancing with each other. "The things you said, Logan…" He looked down on her, while she held his gaze this time. "Well…they were really touching. I ran out of handkerchiefs because of you." He smirked. "But what I wanted to say is… I wished those who did this to you," she stuttered and he looked at her seriously. "I wished they would have heard it."

"Why?" he asked her frowning and stopped when the song ended.

She kissed his cheek quickly while she held back tears, which only caused him to frown even more in confusion. "Because they've proven that you're far away from being what they think you are," she said and turned around, while he watched her with a cocked eyebrow.

"What's wrong?" Jean asked and leant against him. "Did you step on her foot?"

Pausing for a moment, he finally turned towards her. "No,..it's nothing."

After he also had to dance with Jubilee, who had begged him to give in while he had managed to make her admit that she was responsible for the riddles, Ororo came up with a small cake for the twins. Some had even bought small presents for the now one year old children, while Jean told him that if they got more stuff, they definitely needed a bigger room. By now, they already had trouble to put their things somewhere. And with the gifts to their wedding, which were mostly lots of flowers, money, and stuff for their children but also a book of pictures from moments together, it would even become harder. Logan on the contrary, as Jean knew, wasn't someone who needed lots of space for his clothes. Instead he still needed sometimes space for himself, which he had in the wood. Nevertheless, he too had to agree that with the new things, it would become pretty cramped and Wolverine within him would probably become stressed because of it. Maybe he could talk Charles into giving them a bigger room or adding another one two their two ones.

As if the Professor had heard his thoughts, which of course wasn't possible, he asked Logan to follow him to the newly rebuild west wing of the mansion, which had been finished currently after a long winter break. No one of them had seen it before, since Charles had done a good job to hide it from everyone. Looking at it, Logan noticed that there had been made quiet a lot of changes. There were far more windows, a balcony and it contained at least three rooms on the upper and two on the lower level. "What are we doing here?" he asked the man next to him and looked down on Charles smiling face.

"This is my gift to you and Jean," the Professor simply replied and watched how Logan cocked an eyebrow at him.

"What?" he asked him confused and turned towards him completely.

Charles folded his hands in front of his face while his elbows were in the armrests of his wheelchair. "The west wing was redesigned, Logan. It contains a larger bathroom, a living room, a balcony as you can see and empty rooms, which can be used a bedrooms. The kitchen is on the lower level right next to it. There is also a new staircase and elevator now."

"And?" Logan asked him, still completely not sure what to think.

The Professor smiled. "It's yours."

Looking at the west wing in shock, he couldn't believe his eyes. This whole thing was more like an own house. Thinking about it, he suddenly shook his head. "I can't accept this, Chuck."

"Yes, you can, Logan. You have a family now and the kids sooner or later need their own rooms, too," he explained straight ahead. "I know that you don't want to move out. That this is your home. And it's nothing, really!"

"It's too much," Logan protested and still shook his head. "I really can't accept this. It's like…as if you have built complete house for us."

"Then let's make a deal," Charles suggested since he knew how stubborn Logan could be.

Thinking about it, the mutant crossed his arms in front of his chest. "What kind of deal?"

"I wanted to ask this before, Logan. So, let's say you agree and you move into the west wing with your family."

"Ask what?"

Not knowing how the man in front of him would react, Charles smiled briefly. "I watched you teaching the X-Men in self-defense. You did a great job, as I have already told you, and they are really thankful to have you as a leader." He paused briefly and noticed the cocked eyebrow of his opposite. He knew that the man already figured out what he was up to.

"What do you want me to teach, Chuck?" Logan immediately asked since he had smelled a rat when the Professor had first used the word teaching.

Smiling, Charles met his eyes. "I thought because of your skills you could additionally teach Physical Education and Foreign Languages next to the X-Men courses."

Turning around with arms crossed, Logan looked at the west wing. Thinking about it, he had to admit that Jean would be happy about it, but he knew that she would have also reacted in the same way he did. The gift was just too much. They already had an own car. Sighing, he thought it through once more. "Agreed."

The Professor nodded and smiled satisfied. "I'm glad you'll do it."

Smirking, Logan looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "I have to thank. This is just…awesome." Switching his eyes to the part of the mansion which was his own now, he still couldn't believe his luck.

After the party was over at 1:30 a.m. the only ones left on the dark outside were the X-Men. Even Moira and Charles had already gone to bed, while the others were gathered at the front door. Opening it wide, Hank made an inviting gesture. "Come on. You know what you've got to do!"

Logan smirked and pulled the shrieking Jean up who wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, while he kissed her. Carrying her over the threshold he let her down again gently, just to pull her close and seal her lips tenderly with his again. Jean smiled at him and wrapped her arms around him once more.

"So, good night no you then," Ororo winked smiling and hugged the couple tightly.

"Thanks for the weather, 'Ro!" Logan said jokingly and she nodded before she turned around.

"Behave!" she added and took Kurt, who also nodded towards the newly-weds briefly, with her.

"Behave yourself!" Logan called smirking and Jean giggled when she watched how her friend blushed. Ororo could only smile at Kurt shyly.

Shaking his head, Scott kissed Jean briefly on the cheek before he patted Logan on the shoulder. "Night!"

"Well," Hank said and came closer. "…the kids did their best to decorate your room for the night, so…be kind to it, okay?" He winked. "Don't be too loud and think about my advice! Oh, and no complaints on aching muscles in the morning, okay?"

"Furball…," Logan grunted and gave him a look that told volumes. "…just go to bed!"

"Have fun!" his opposite grinned and disappeared.

The groom watched him leave before he looked down on Jean again. Kissing her, he wrapped his arm around her waist and they walked down the corridor to their left. Heading towards the room which Logan had occupied while Ororo had watched the twins upstairs. "Oh, Jubes…," he suddenly cried and groaned. Shaking his head, he looked at the small lit candles and rose leaves on the ground. "Tell me that this isn't true…" Jean only giggled and he stopped in front of the door. Logan cocked an eyebrow at the _Beware of the Wolverine_ sign on it, which included a drawing of an exaggerated pissed looking anime version of him. He knew instantly that this was Peter's doing. Hearing his wife still giggling, he cocked an eyebrow at her. "So, you think that's funny, darlin'?" he pulled her up while she laughed. Logan opened the door and closed it with his foot behind them as he suddenly groaned again. "Oh no…" His eyes scanned the room, which was also lit up by candles while rose leaves were on the ground and bed. "Can we go into a motel!" he asked her pleadingly and gave her a stressed look. This was just too much…

"Why? It's romantic…," Jean replied and kissed him gently.

"'f course that ya like it," he grunted and kissed her back hungrily, while he dropped her gently to the ground. With his hands on her hips, he gave her a wolfish smirk, while his eyes began to shine. "So,…what's my wife wearing underneath her grown, huh?" he asked her playfully and saw her smiling at him seductively. Jean laid a hand on his chest and made him walk backwards slowly, before she pushed him down on the bed. Still, smirking, he watched how she stepped back a bit and got slowly rid off her gloves and shoes. Using her best seductive smile, while she kept her eyes on his shining ones, Jean pulled the barrettes out of her hair and it soon fell loosely down on her shoulders. Her hands had already found the zipper on her back and began to open it. With an easy movement of her hip, the grown fell down to the ground and she heard him immediately breathing in sharply. "Jesus…," Logan gasped and Jean watched how his dark eyes ran over her whole body and sexy white underwear, which she had bought with the grown; scanning her from head to toe. She blushed slightly, while her heart was racing. "You want to kill me, don't ya?" Logan asked hoarsely and sat up and bit, while she came slowly closer; stopping right in front of him, while he looked at her string and corset. "Go on like that, darlin' and we're not married for long…"

"You like it?" she asked and pulled a strand out of her face.

As an answer he grabbed her quickly and pulled her down onto his lap, kissing her hungrily while his hands stroke over her curves.

"Playing the innocent girl won't do anymore, darlin'," he replied and licked on her neck, whereas Jean already felt his arousal. "I know what you're up to, gorgeous…"

She smiled and bit her lips in the next moment, ready to flirt with him. "Do you?" she asked playfully and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Logan chuckled and looked at her with already dazed eyes. "You knew that I'd like it!"

"Yeah, I did…"

"Vixen!" he growled, rolled her over and pinned her to the bed, kissing her hungrily. His hands stroked down her legs and Jean immediately had to arch up by the feeling of his warm hands. Suddenly she pushed him back telekinetically. Cocking an eyebrow at her, Logan watched how she began to pull off his jacket and quickly got rid off his shirt. "Still can't wait to get my shirt off, eh?" he teased her and smirked before he pulled her into another kiss while her hands already worked on his pants and pulled them down. Since she directly touched his skin, Jean could only shake her head in amusement.

"I knew it!" she said and grinned at him.

Logan only shrugged. "Well, I thought I was already wearing enough…"

"Right…" She pulled him down again and it didn't take long and she, too, were rid off her close, thanks to his quick hands. Laying on to of her, Logan kept on kissing and caressing her everywhere until Jean began to moan softly under his touching. Looking up he took notice of the contraceptives Hank had really left for them on the bedside table. Smirking, while Jean softly bit into his neck, he reached out, as he suddenly felt her hand grabbing his.

"No…"

Cocking and eyebrow at her, Logan studies her face closely. "You sure?"

She pulled him down into another kiss and rolled them over, saddling him. Giving him a lascivious smile, Jean began to move her hip into position. "Yeah," she only replied softly and entwined her hands with his, before she lowered her hip on Logan's…

XXX

"Hey, Scott greeted Hank and Moira sleepily who were already sitting in the kitchen drinking coffee.

"Morning!" hank greeted back and went on reading the newspaper hearing Scott yawn. "Haven't slept well?"

"No," he replied and rested his head in his hand.

"How come?" Moira asked him and poured him some coffee.

"Thanks! Don't ask me. Couldn't sleep."

Hank smirked devilishly. "Has nothing to do with our newly weds, has it?"

"No!" Scott waved off quickly. "I'm over it, okay?"

"Good!"

"And besides," Scott added quickly. "I don't want to know what they've done!"

XXX

In the meanwhile, Jean slowly opened her eyes and blinked against the bright sunlight. Moving a bit, she smiled softly as she heard a snorting protest behind her and felt how Logan cuddled up to her closer. Burying his face on her neck, he kissed her softly.

"Morning," she said calmly and turned around.

"Mornin'," he only grunted half asleep and closed his eyes again. He was too tired.

Jean had to smirk, nevertheless, she, too, had trouble keeping her eyes open. The night had been long, but their sleep was rather short.

Suddenly, he rolled onto his back and ran a hand through his face groaning. "Gosh, I need to eat…"

Resting her head in his chest, while Logan stroked her belly gently, she heaved a deep sigh. "And I need a coffee," she mumbled and snuggled closer. "What time is it?"

Opening his eyes briefly he glanced at his watch. "10:35 a.m.," he grunted and sighed. "Do you have any idea how much I've t'eat because of ya?"

She giggled and moved a bit to lie on top of him again. "So, no power left, huh?" she teased him and kissed his neck while her hand wandered down his belly.

He chuckled and bit his lip. "Sorry, even if I wanted to, darlin', but my tank's empty…"

Giving him a lascivious grin she moved a bit on him, before she bent down to nibble on his ear tenderly. "Doesn't feel like empty…," she whispered and he opened his eyes.

"Okay,…maybe it's still enough fuel for one more ride," he shrugged playfully and rolled her shrieking form over.

XXX

"Morning!" Ororo entered together with Kurt and sat down next to each other, while the others gave them amused looks.

"So, are they still sleeping?" Moira asked and looked at the clock which showed nearly 11 a.m. "I mean, we are already very late…"

"No, they were just on their way upstairs," Ororo answered and handed Kurt the breadbasket.

"And?" Hank asked curiously.

She shrugged. "He's his old self again…"

"Too bad for you girls, huh?" Scott teased the two women grinning. "No more drooling and staring…"

"Shut up!" the white haired woman shot back and gave him a look. "I didn't drool!"

"No, you did far worse!" Hank smirked and went on reading as suddenly Jean and Logan entered the kitchen. "Oh dear…which truck hit the two of you? The shower didn't help, huh?"

"Yeah, mornin' t'ya, too," Logan growled and sat down, while Jean handed hip a cup. The others exchanged amused looks since both mutants couldn't hide it.

"How long did you sleep?" Moira asked them a bit worriedly since they looked more asleep than awake. "Not much if you ask me…" Logan looked at the food on the table and finally turned towards the fridge. Thanks to his wife, he needed far more than that. Jean on the contrary only sipped on her coffee. "Do I get an answer?" Moira asked and waited.

Logan closed the fridge with his hip and turned towards the range. Jean watched him frowning, but also curiously.

"Well, I bet not much if he begins to cook on his own," Hank commented and watched Logan closely, but amused. "Right?"

Logan rolled his eyes. "Somethin' around two or three hours, okay?"

The blue mutant lowers the newspaper and looked at him with widened eyes. "I really want to have your stamina…"

"Really? Even if you have to eat as much as a caveman afterwards?" Scott teased him and ignored Logan's low growl.

"And then he bellyaches about his too tight uniform again," Ororo added and smirked at her blue friend.

Jean put her cup down and poured some more hot coffee. "Where are the twins?"

"Still sleeping," Kurt replied smiling. "Jubilee and Kitty are close by."

Looking up again, she watched Logan putting a plate with dozen omelets, ham and eggs down.

"As I said," Scott commented it and shook his head at the amount of food. "Caveman! You're not going to eat all this by yourself, do you?"

"Nope, only the rest," Logan grunted and handed Jean a fork who began to eat the eggs slowly. "What?" he asked her since he had noticed her reserve.

She waved off. "Didn't know you could cook."

"Canadian, remember?" he replied and began to eat, too.

"So," Hank began and laid away his newspaper just to watch the couple eating in the next second. "You had a good night, then?"

"Hm," Logan made without looking up.

"What about your honeymoon by the way?" Ororo asked and made him finally look up from his breakfast.

He shrugged. "Girl's stuff."

Scott gave a short derisive laugh. "Married for not even 24 hours and you're all your old grumpy self again, huh?" Logan only gave him a look.

"No, honestly," Storm continued and looked to and fro the newly-weds. "You have to do it. I mean…it belongs to a wedding. So where do you wanna go?" She looked at them curiously, since she knew that the couple had different ideas, if they had some.

"Dunno," he grunted and turned to Jean. "Where do you wanna go?"

"Actually…I thought you could show me your home… You promised it, at least."

"He's home. So you want him to make a tour through the mansion?" Hank said jokingly.

"Campfire in the library? Sleeping in the gym?" Scott added grinning and quickly began to eat again when he heard his opposite's low growl.

"You want to go to Canada!" Logan replied surprised. He had believed she would drag him to the Caribbean's or even worse to an even more crowded family resort. He had already seen himself sitting in the middle of many love-sick couples…

"Yeah…," she said calmly and nodded.

He cocked an eyebrow at her; still not convinced that she really meant it. "A honeymoon in the cold snow!" Again she nodded so he could only shrug. "Your decision. But don't even think about complaining later. It's freezing cold up in the Rocky's…"

Jean smirked and moved a bit closer. "You're there to keep my warm…," she told him mentally and he gave her instantly a wolfish grin, while his eyes began to sparkle once more. All of a sudden he didn't feel half comatose because of his pretty busy, but beautiful, night anymore. He definitely was in flirting-mode again. The others could only look at each other in confusion, since they had noticed the immediate change.

"You bet," he gave back the same way and smirked.

"Hey!" Ororo protested and waved to get their attention again. "It's not nice to talk without us being able to hear you…"

"Ain't for ya ears anyway, 'Ro!" he grinned at her. "Only makes ya blush!"

"Then it's better you'll go on talking on your private line," Hank waved off.

"Yeah, we don't want to hear your dirty thoughts…," Scott added nodding.

Logan only smirked, before he took Jean's hand and pulled her off the chair. Shrieking and giggling, she suddenly sat on his lap and he wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"Gosh, those crazy love-birds so early this morning…," Scott protested and shook his head. He still had a headache because of his lack of sleep and the two of them obviously didn't help a bit to make him feel better. It was rather the opposite…

"You're jealous!" Hank told him bluntly and gave him a grin.

"No! I want to eat but not with all those smacks and this smooching around me," the man went on and shook his head. Ororo only giggled and smiled at Kurt, while Moira had to grin, too.

Logan let go off Jean's mouth, still holding her tight and gave him a look. "Be glad that you slept upstairs, then!" he teased him and Scott immediately looked up.

"Believe me, I am!" he waved off emphasizing it with a gesture.

"But I had to get up at night and met a smirking Bobby on my way," Hank teased the couple back and enjoyed seeing how Logan cocked a warning eyebrow at him, while Jean obviously blushed. "I held my hands over my ears! Don't worry!" he grinned and the red head cheek's only got redder. Embarrassed, she buried her head on her husband's neck. This one, on the contrary, was still looking at the two men opposite him suspiciously.

"Did it help?" Scott instantly asked Hank, ready to tease them a bit, too.

"No really! As I said…I really want to have his stamina!" Both men laughed and Jean felt even worse than before.

"Be glad that we're almost alone in the Rocky's," Logan told her calmly and stroked over her back when she looked up; looking like a schoolgirl who had been caught by doing something forbidden.

"I'm sure I am…," she answered barely audible and didn't dare to look at the two men on the other side, who still enjoyed themselves by grinning at the couple.

"So, when do you want to leave? We can take care of the kids while you're gone," Ororo said to change the subject again.

"You decide!" Logan pulled her close to kiss his favorite spot on her neck again.

Jean thought about it for a brief moment. "Well, the kids are off for two weeks in three weeks. In that way she wouldn't have to watch over our twins and teach at the same time," she suggested and he nodded.

"Fine with me."

XXX

_3 weeks later_

Logan and Jean are upstairs in their old room and occupied with packing their stuff. Boxes and other bags surrounded them, including their clothes and personal things, which still had to be brought to their new home in the west wing. They still had to paint the walls and buy furniture for their own rooms, but couldn't make it until today. Therefore, they had changed plans and decided to go on honeymoon first, before dealing with moving out of their two rooms.

While packing his stuff into his kit-bag, Logan kept on looking up from it and watched her frowning. Being aware of him doing so for minutes, she finally stopped in her movements. Somehow it made her feel uncomfortable. Not him looking at her in general. It was more the look he gave her all of a sudden. She had noticed that he behaved a bit strangely for nearly three weeks now. "What's wrong?"

He shrugged. "I don't know…"

Raising an eyebrow at him, Jean gave him a strange look. "You're watching me the whole time through with this weird look on your face and don't know?" Logan closed his bag and stepped around the bed; stopping right behind her. He lowered his head and sniffed. "Do I stink?" she asked him frightened and began to sniff on her shirt panicky.

"No," he replied soothingly and crossed his arms in front of his chest, while he tried to remember where he'd caught the smell the last time. Usually he categorized smells instantly after catching one. Put each one into a place in his mind, so that he remembered one forever. Still, this one was somehow special. He knew it but it wasn't an everyday smell…

"I didn't touch Scott!" Jean immediately said and shook his head, being afraid that they would start arguing now.

"I know!"

Sighing relieved she still looked at him in confusion. "Do I smell bad, then?"

He only shook his head still thinking. "No,…but different…"

Jean frowned in total confusion now. "Different! In what way? I still use the same stuff for showering."

Logan shrugged. "Dunno, but I know this smell… I noticed this already nearly three weeks ago. But now it's even stronger…"

"Is it good or bad?" That was the only thing that interested her. She didn't want to drive to the airport and sitting in a plane when she smelled bad.

He finally gave her a soothing smile to calm her down again. "Good. Very good even… But different…"

She still didn't know what he meant and went on packing while shaking her head. As long as she didn't smell bad it was fine for her. They wouldn't make it to the airport in time if she had to shower once more. Walking over to the bathroom to the last things together, she opened the small cupboard on the wall and immediately paused as her eyes caught something. "Can you already take the bags down? I'll be right there!"

"Yeah," he replied and she waited until he was gone, before she took a package out of the cupboard; thinking about what he had said before…

XXX

Packing the last bag into the black SUV, Logan turned towards his kids who were on the arms of Ororo and Kurt. "Behave!" he told them softly and gave each of them a kiss, before he turned to the two grown ups. "If something happens…"

"We call," Ororo nodded and cut him off. "Don't worry, they'll be fine!" She smiled at the twins and him briefly.

Logan sighed and looked up to a window, waiting for his wife to come down. "What's taking her so long?" he grunted and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"You know women," Scott replied with his hands in his pockets. "They even need an hours before they show up for breakfast." He looked up to the window, too, before he watched Logan again. "Behave yourself, Logan!"

The addressed only shrugged playfully, ready to tease him a bit, too. "We'll see…"

"Well, at least we can't hear you…," hank shot back grinning.

The Professor shook his head, but still he had to smile. "Enjoy your honeymoon and forget about us for a few days!" he told Logan who had met his eyes. "Those two weeks are all yours."

"Enjoying is the keyword, Chuck!"

Scott groaned. "Can you think about something else, lately?" he asked the smirking man in front of him who only chuckled.

"With such a woman next to ya? Nope!"

The front door was finally being opened and Jean appeared with another small bag in her hand. "Can you take this to the car? I'll be right there!"

"Yeah, have heard this before," he teased her and took the bag out of her hand.

"Husband duties, Logan! Get used to it!" Hank said laughing.

"Yeah, yeah," this one waved off and turned around. "See ya in two weeks!"

Jean waited for him to reach the car, before she turned around. Ororo looked at her suspiciously. "Why are you smiling so brightly?" she asked her and earned an even wider smile from the red head.

"Nothing!" she waved off and kissed her two kids gently. "Be nice to your aunts and uncles, okay?" She said and stroked over their heads briefly.

"I already said to Logan that I hope you'll enjoy those two weeks. Have fun!" Charles told her and she nodded.

"They will!" Hank said and crossed his arms while he exchanged a look with Scott; noticing that Jean gave her one of her own.

"What? He's right," Scott protested. "Your husband over there already confirmed it!"

Blushing, Jean turned around and saw Logan, who was leaning against their car, grinning provocatively. Shaking her head, she knew that he'd heard what the men had said.

"Thank you guys," she gives them a last smile and turned around, but Ororo followed her a bit.

"Hey, come one, what is it?" she demanded to know curiously. Jean bent forward and whispered something into her ear, which caused Storm to smile widely. "I understand!" she smiled and winked at her. "Have fun!"

Jean finally joined Logan, who looked at her suspiciously, at the car. "What was that?" he asked her and nodded towards Ororo who had stopped next to Kurt again. "Girly plans of how to get rid off your husband in the mountains?"

She giggled. "No…" Turning around, she looked at their kids a bit sadly. "Strange that we won't see them for two whole weeks…"

He followed her look and she watched him closely. "Yeah," he replied trying to hide his worries since he had to leave his kids alone. "But they'll be fine." He kissed her briefly before walking around the car.

"Logan?"

"Hm?" He looked up while opening the driver's seat door.

"How many kids do you want to have by the way?" she asked him straight ahead and watched him shrugging first, before he opened her door, too.

"Dunno. Never thought about having some at all," he said honestly and looked at her frowning. "Why?" Jean only shrugged and walked over to her passenger seat, while he cocked an eyebrow at her in confusion. "Why!" he asked again and leant against the car door waiting for her to reply. After taking her seat, Jean looked up and smiled at him; looking right into his eyes without saying or thinking anything.

"What are they waiting for!" Scott asked and turned towards the others while he wrinkled his brows. They had watched the couple the whole time through and now they were staring at each other without talking at all.

"Maybe they are just changing plans?" Hank suggested and shrugged.

Suddenly, they heard Jean shrieking loudly and watched how Logan pulled her out of the car, kissing her hungrily. Surprised, the men exchanged glances.

"And what is that about!" Scott asked and felt completely lost.

"Good question…" the blue mutant replied.

Ororo groaned. "You guys are really brain-dead sometimes, you know that!"

Leaning a bit forward to have a better look at her, Scott crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Then tell us, Mrs. Know-it-all!"

"Use your eyes," she said and nodded towards the blue mutant on her left. "Kurt got it, right?"

Giving her a half-confused look, he nodded hesitantly. "Yeah,…I think so…"

"See?" she said proudly and grinned at the other men who only shook their heads.

"I'm brain dead, Ororo, so please explain," Hank finally pleaded after watching the couple hugging each other tightly.

Ororo sighed once more, since also the Professor was waiting for an explanation. "I'm really disappointed!" she mocked.

"'Ro!" Scott warned her and waited impatiently.

"Well, let's say they didn't listen to your advice, Hank!"

"Advice?" the diplomat asked her confused.

"Do I have to be _that _bluntly?" the woman asked despaired and couldn't believe that the men just didn't understand her if the answer was so simple.

Kurt nodded. "So it seems…"

"Okay," she sighed and thought about the right words, while Lily was playing with her collar. "Parts of Logan reached their target in their wedding night! Got it now!" she asked hopefully. First the men exchanged looks, before they switched to the happy couple again, that finally had gotten into the car. Xavier could only smile, while Hank and Scott still looked at each other. The others could really see how their brains kicked into high gear to solve this simple puzzle.

"You're really brain-dead! Ororo mocked and shook her head in disbelief. Finally both men gave her a shocked look in realization.

"Oh!" they said at the same time and watched how the car disappeared through the front gate.

_**The End**_

**Okay, that was it. The final chapter of Changes. It was really strange to write it, but I enjoyed doing it and added some additional stuff while typing it up. I hope you guys enjoyed reading it, too.**

**First of all, I have to thank you guys, and I mean all of you, for staying with me so long. I can't believe that this story has a total amount of 42 Chapters. I never planned to write so much. When I started I planned 10 chapters maximum and now look at it. I really, really have to thank all of you for reading and reviewing it. I always loved to read your comments. Actually I wanted to thank each one of you separately, but I think I can't do it just like that. I have to thank ALL of you and with it I really mean each single one of you. : ) Thank you so, so much! It's really been an honor to write it. : )**

**Also I want to thank those who have given me tips how to write and allowed me to cite something from their own stories, like Kavi and Janetdu. I have to thank Tamara for doing the beta's, too. Especially because the last chapters have so many pages!**

**But in total, I thank all of you equally for helping here. : )**

**Changes has a total of 540 pages in WORD, the longest are Chapter 40 and the Epilogue here. That's more than I've ever imagined…**

**Well, what can I say about the Sequel? I already wrote some scenes for it while I was working on chapter 37 or 38. I decided to split the Sequel into two parts. Each tell a story on its own, but they are connected with each other. Since I started to read some X-Men comics after the third movie, I can say that the sequel has some influence of some storylines from the comics, but only when it comes to the idea. The story of the sequel was made up by me. So don't simply expect a copied story of a comic! ; ) I already wrote the beginning and ending, but also some middle parts and you will get your beloved twists in the plots and evil cliffies. I can promise that! Still, I don't know how many chapters it will be in the end. While writing Changes I never thought about what the story was over. I hadn't had a master plan for the beginning or ending. I just wrote it. So, you can expect the Sequel being completely different from Changes. It's more dark and dramatic than this one here. Of course it also has some happy and sappy moments, but all I can tell you: Jean and Logan will have a tough time and they have to fight a lot for their relationship! ; ) But I won't tell you more: D**

**Thanks again for your support! I hope that you will like the Sequel, too. : ) I try to post it as soon as possible, but I have to learn for another exam, too. So it can take some time until I upload it. See ya!**


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